


From Rags to Riches

by MTT_Gwen



Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: Don't Judge Me, F/M, Fluff, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, M/M, Reader is asexual, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-08
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-07-28 04:53:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 32
Words: 56,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16234583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MTT_Gwen/pseuds/MTT_Gwen
Summary: You're just a waiter in a small restaurant on the outskirts of Duckburg. You want nothing more than to leave your tiny life for a life of travel and fun. Little do you know, with the help of one important duck, your dream is about to come true.





	1. First Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I just got caught up on season 1 of the DuckTales reboot. When I was younger I had a weird crush on Scrooge McDuck. I don't know why, but it probably makes me a furry. I absolutely still love Scrooge and I blame David Tennant a lot. So this is going to be a thing I guess. School is about to pick up pace so I'll update when I can (I say as I expect absolutely zero people to read this because who tf else is into Scrooge McDuck?) Also chapters will probably be on the shorter side depending on which way this story goes. If you do read this I hope you enjoy my nonsensical enjoyment of Scrooge McDuck.

You were just a waiter in a little diner on the outskirts of Duckburg. The days were long and the pay was crap. You were trying so hard to save up money so you could go back to school for journalism. Specifically, travel journalism. You wanted nothing more than to leave your little life, but for now Duckburg was the best you would get. 

You got off work at two in the morning every morning and made your way down the street to your studio apartment. Saying you didn’t live in the best part of town would be an understatement. Walking home was always terrifying, but you didn’t have a choice. You didn’t have a car and the bus didn’t run that late. 

You often saw Beagle Boys on your way home, but if you just stayed out of their way, they didn’t bother you much. They were always causing trouble in the city though. They mostly tried to cause trouble for the city’s richest resident, Scrooge McDuck. It seemed everyone tried causing trouble for Mr. McDuck really. All you knew about him was he was some billionaire that was a recluse until recently. You often saw a plane coming and going from his house. Every time you saw it overhead you could only wish that you were on it too. However, you were stuck on the ground in Duckburg. 

Eventually you found yourself in a rut. You went to work six days a week and saw all the same people over and over again. Six days a week you woke up, went to work, then went home. You managed to get every Sunday off so you could do laundry and run errands. It was just the same thing every week. It made you more and more exhausted as time went on. 

Late one night, there was a family in booth 2. They were the only ones in the diner other than you and the cook. It looked like an older duck and his four grandchildren. You looked at the time. It was past midnight. You questioned why this old man would bring these kids in so late, but also you didn’t care. You just wanted to get them in and out so you could go home and sleep.

“Hello, I’m (y/n) and I will be your server today. Can I get you guys drinks to start off with?” You managed to ask in your best customer service voice. They all ordered and you brought their drinks out quickly. When you set down the last glass the door swung open. A tall, buff duck stepped in.

“I finally crashed- er parked the car, Mr. McDee,” He cheered as he joined the family you were serving. 

The group was really easy to serve. You checked on them often and you enjoyed the conversation and laughter while you cleaned the rest of the place. Closing time was approaching and you wanted to go home as soon as your last customers left. 

When the group was finished, the kids followed the buff guy out to the car and the older man went with you to the cash register to pay. 

“So you’re from Scotland right?” You asked just trying to make small talk. 

“Aye,” he gave a small laugh. “You would not believe how many dobbers ask if I’m Irish.” The rest of the transaction was the usual chatter of “thank you have a good night” “thank you you too” then he walked out the door. 

You started cleaning the table and grabbed the tip. You paused before putting it into your pocket and held it up to look at it. They left you a hundred dollar bill. You were speechless for a second. Their tab was only around $50. This was a 200% tip. You looked outside and caught one last glance at the old man as he stepped into a limo. That’s when you realized… it was Scrooge McDuck. 

Really you should have guessed it from the silk top hat and the rest of his fancy garb. It didn’t exactly fit in with your side of town. Why was he on your side of town anyways? It was Beagle Boy territory. 

You shook off your shock and stuffed the bill in your pocket. You finished cleaning the table and scrubbed the dishes before clocking out and rushing home. 

You could have cried looking at that hundred dollar bill. Most of your tips were fives and tens. You never got anything over a twenty. Really you couldn’t believe it. You put the hundred in the box under your bed labelled “college fund.” You almost couldn’t sleep. You just kept thinking about how incredibly lucky you were tonight. You heard a lot of criticism of Mr. McDuck. You heard he was just a greedy old man and a menace to Duckburg. Sure he caused some damage now and then, but he always seemed to clean it up. Tonight, you didn’t really believe those rumors. Tonight you were grateful to Mr. McDuck. You were unbelievably grateful.


	2. Jaw$

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning I suck at dialogue. I suck even more at Scottish dialogue. Why am I doing this?  
> Also, apparently I will be working with canon. Why am I starting at Jaw$? I have no idea. Enjoy my nonsense.

It was about a week before you saw Mr. McDuck again. The only difference was that this time he was on the news. Roxanne Featherly was interviewing him. The diner rush was surprisingly slow so you stopped to catch a bit of the interview. 

“So what part of Ireland are you from?” Roxanne asked Scrooge. You could see him holding back his anger. Even you knew he was Scottish just from his accent. Then again Roxanne seemed to be doing it on purpose. You sighed and continued your work ignoring the television for a while. 

Eventually you saw almost everyone rush out of the diner. You swung your head around looking for an explanation when your eyes caught the television once again. Something happened at Mr. McDuck’s money bin. A giant shark-like creature made of gold and jewels thrashed about spilling some of the riches from its body. Citizens gathered around to pick up what fell off the shark. You probably would have ran down there yourself if you weren’t afraid of getting written up. Then the shark creature grew legs and you were happy staying exactly where you were. 

You watched the whole event unfold. Life in Duckburg sure could be interesting sometimes. 

The diner closed early and for the first time in a long time you were off before midnight. You hopped on a bus and rode it to the money bin. You knew very well almost everything would be gone by the time you got there. You also knew you’d probably have to walk across the city to get back home. However, you didn’t care about that. You wanted to take some pictures and write about what happened. 

Security stood watch close to the bin when you finally reached the area. You couldn’t get very close, but you could still snap a few pictures with your phone. You took a few pictures before your camera focused on someone just ahead of you.

It was Scrooge. 

You were hesitant to approach him, but you wanted to thank him for the tip he gave you. Every step toward him made you more and more nervous, but why? That night in the diner you weren’t nervous. Then again, you didn’t realize you were in the presence of a billionaire. 

“Excuse me, Mr. McDuck?” you said with a shaking voice. He turned and looked a little frustrated. You could understand why. “I don’t mean to bother you. I really didn’t expect to see you here this late. I was your waiter the other day at the Little Duckburg Diner. I just wanted to thank you so much for the tip you left.”

“Oh that?” His expression softened. “That was nothing. Just a wee bit of gratitude really. Shoulda been here earlier tonight. Tatties o'er the side.” 

“I probably would have if I wasn’t working,” you laughed. “Just kidding of course. That shark grew legs and all thought of greed left my mind.”

“I don’t particularly like magic sharks growin legs either. I don’t like magic in general really.” He stated. “So what did bring you out here?”

“I got off work early and I wanted to scope out the damage. I thought I could write up something about the aftermath.” You explained.

“Ah, you’re a reporter nyaff as well,” he scoffed. 

“Not exactly,” you started. “I’m just a waiter. I want to go into journalism, but school is ridiculously expensive. I’m saving up money for it. That hundred you gave me just pushed me over what I need for the first two semesters. Only six more to save up for.” 

“Well bless me bagpipes. Another hard worker out there.” Scrooge beamed. He had a wide grin on his face. He looked proud of you and that made you feel special. No one really ever looked at you like that before. 

“So, what brought you to the diner the other night?” You asked trying to move the conversation along.

“The kids, Launchpad, and I had just driven in from out of town so we stopped in for a meal,” he said simply.

“You did realize that’s like, prime Beagle territory right?” You asked. “Weren’t you worried about the kids getting hurt or anything?”

“Dearie, those Beagle Boys ought to be more worried about my kids coming after them,” Scrooge laughed. “Sure they try to come after me and they’ve held the kids for ransom once or twice, but I’m not worried. We always come out in one piece.” 

The wind picked up and you shivered. You didn’t realize how cold it was getting. You checked your phone for the time. It was almost one in the morning. You sighed knowing you had a very long walk ahead of you. You slid your phone in your pocket and extended your hand to Mr. McDuck. 

“Well, it’s been nice chatting, but I have a rather long walk home,” you said shaking his hand. 

“Where do you live?” He asked.

“Near the diner,” you said. 

“And you’re walking?!” Scrooge practically shouted. “It’ll take you well over an hour and a half to get home!”

“It’s not so bad. I’ve had to walk father in less comfortable shoes,” you laughed nervously. “I’ll be fine.”

“I cannae let you go that far this time of night. I can have my driver drop you off.” He offered. “Launchpad!” He called out. Suddenly his limo swerved around the corner and came right up to you and Mr. McDuck. The big, buff duck from the diner stepped out. “Launchpad, I need you to take…”

“(Y/n)” you chimed in.

“Right, I need you to take (y/n) home.” Scrooge commanded. 

“You got it Mr. McDee.” Launchpad said. He opened the door for you and closed it when you got inside. You rolled down your window a bit.

“Thank you so much Mr. McDuck.” You 

“Oh please, call me Scrooge,” he insisted. 

“Okay, thank you Scrooge.” You corrected yourself. With that you were off. 

Launchpad’s driving was terrifying in all honesty and by the time you got home you wished that you had just walked. It was a quick drive, but the fear made it seem longer than it was. You jumped out of the car the second it came to a stop. Launchpad got out as well and walked you to your door. You thanked him for the ride and waited until he got to the limo before you closed your door. He was a big guy that could probably fight off any attackers, but you wanted to make sure he was safe. 

You sat on your bed and wrote about the destruction of the bin. At some point your writing strayed from the bin and began to focus on Scrooge himself. He was so nice to you even though he barely knew you. You scrolled through the pictures on your phone and found the one that focused on Scrooge. You smiled to yourself for a second before putting your phone away. You laid back for a moment and before you knew it you were asleep. 

Scrooge seemed to become a hero to you. You remembered how he looked at you when he called you a hard worker and you wanted him to keep looking at you like that. You didn’t know why, but you wanted to make him proud.


	3. Up All Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got into a show and my favorite character died so I feel some angst and it manifested as minor conflict at the end of the chapter? Also the next few weeks are going to be hella busy for me so I'll update this as I can.

You kept working as hard as possible. A large portion of your tips went directly into the box under your bed. You hardly ever carried cash because of the area you lived in, but you took the hundred from the box and carried it at all times. It was like a motivator to you. You kept it between your phone and its case so it was safe. 

Days flew by. You were in your routine, but you were okay with it. You were working towards a major goal and you fully believed in yourself. You’re customer service voice wasn’t as fake as it normally was. You were happy.

About a month after the money shark incident, you saw that familiar face in the diner again. It was midnight on a Monday so the diner was close to empty. Scrooge McDuck sat in booth 2 again with a young duck girl and an older duck woman. You were more than happy to rush over and serve them.

“Back from another adventure, Scrooge?” You smiled. 

“You know it,” he said with a wink. 

“Thanks again for the ride home that one night. Launchpad scared the quack out of me, but at least I got home in one piece,” you laughed. “Now, what can I start you guys off with?” 

You took their orders and watched as the diner cleared out. Soon enough everyone was gone and you found yourself chatting with Scrooge and his friends. Mrs. Beakley, the older duck woman, was Scrooge’s housekeeper. According to Webby, the young duck girl and grandaughter to Mrs. Beakley, her granny was also a S.H.U.S.H. agent. During that time she met Scrooge and stayed by his side. 

Webby was so excited to talk about Scrooge and her granny. Apparently they had just got back from finishing up some old business. Webby seemed to be a super fan of Scrooge. She lived in his mansion her entire life, but it seems she only recently started to hang around him. 

At some point Mrs. Beakley took Webby home, but you and Scrooge sat for a while to talk. The cook cleaned up some then left you the keys to lock up. You shut off most the lights and closed the blinds on all the curtains to show you were closed. Then you sat at the booth with Scrooge.

“So what’s the story with Webby?” You asked. “She seems so excited to just know you and be around you, but it doesn’t sound like she’s been able to be around you much.”

“I will admit, I’ve not been around Webbigail much. I often pushed her away. She reminded me too much of… someone.” Scrooge trailed off for a moment. “I pushed everyone away even my family. After all family is nothing but trouble. However, I love trouble. When my great nephews came to the mansion they brought this daft old man back into the adventurer life. I even started talking to my nephew Donald again. I soon realized Webbigail really looked up to me. She and Mrs. Beakley are family to me.” 

Scrooge kept mentioning family and it made you a little uneasy. You never had a real family. Your mom left when you were an egg and your dad kind of passed you from relative to relative. You were never in one place long enough to unpack your bags so you never got close to anyone. Once you turned eighteen you started working at the diner. You got your apartment for cheap and eventually got your GED so you could work towards college. 

You and Scrooge continued to talk for a long time. He told you about his adventures with the kids, but he didn’t mention much about his old days of adventure. You told him about working at the diner and what you want to do in the future. You also told him about how you would often see his plane leaving Duckburg and how badly you wished you could go. He offered to take you one day, but you probably couldn’t get out of work. You sat there chatting for hours. You barely noticed the sun starting to rise. 

“Have we really been here all night?” You asked while peaking outside to see daylight. 

“Apparently so,” Scrooge said a little shocked. 

“I should probably let you go home now,” you laughed as you unlocked the front door. The cook was just about to come in.

“Were you two here all night?” The cook asked.

“Yeah, we’re just as shocked as you are buddy,” you said handing him the keys. “I’ll be back in a few hours.” You walked out of the building with Scrooge and started walking toward your apartment. 

“I probably shouldn’t be out and about in broad daylight around here.” Scrooge said. “There’s a pack of Beagle Boys right across the street.”

“Yet, despite the top hat that really gives you away, I don’t think they’ve noticed you,” you reassured him. 

“To be fair the Beagle Boys are a lot of weapons-grade dobbers.” Scrooge laughed. Scrooge used a lot of Scottish jargon. Sometimes you were lost but for the most part you could piece together what he meant. 

The morning was cool making the walk more enjoyable. You suddenly felt how tired you actually were. Your whole body felt heavier. The relief you felt when you saw your apartment was unbelievable. You noticed Scrooge’s limo sitting outside already. He must have told Launchpad to meet him there at some point. You waited by your door to watch Scrooge get into the limo. Once he was inside you turned to unlock your door. There was only one problem. The lock was broken. 

You stopped dead in your tracks. Someone got into your apartment. You took a deep breath and pushed the door open. It didn’t look like anyone was inside, but the place was a mess. You’re heart sank. In the middle of the floor was your college fund box. 

“No…” you whispered to yourself. You slowly picked up the box expecting the worse. It was light. You opened it and there was nothing inside. Tears filled your eyes as you dropped to your knees. All the money you had saved was gone.


	4. A Helping Hand

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to get to the cute stuff, but I'm taking my time with it. Or at least trying to take my time with it. I'm really excited for the new season of DuckTales soon! I really love this reboot. They did such a great job with it.

“What in the blazes happened in here?” You heard from behind you. Scrooge and Launchpad stood at your doorway. You managed to bring yourself to your feet. 

“Somebody must have broken in last night,” you sobbed. “I had over three years worth of tips in this box. I’m such an idiot for keeping it here.”

“Go easy on yourself,” Scrooge advised. “I cannae let you stay here right now. You’re in much need of a kip and you cannae very well sleep when your lock is busted. Pack some things. We have room at the mansion.”

“No I can’t ask you to do that. I thought you guys left already anyways. What are you doing here?” You asked. 

“Something told me there was something amiss. I was right as usual,” Scrooge boasted. “Anyways I insist you stay at the mansion. This may have never even happened had you been home last night. Please, just until your lock is fixed.”

You begrudgingly agreed, but only because you were far too tired to argue. Launchpad helped you grab a few things. You didn’t plan to be gone longer than a day or two, but you didn’t want for whoever broke in to come back and take more stuff. You went to the office and told the landlord about your lock. He said he’d get it fixed as soon as possible, but you knew he’d just get to it when he felt like it. 

Launchpad’s terrible driving didn’t phase you this time because you fell asleep on the ride to the mansion. Scrooge gently woke you when you arrived at the mansion. It was absolutely massive. You couldn’t believe how big the outside was and the mansion seemed bigger on the inside. 

You took your bags and followed Scrooge to a room upstairs. It seemed very easy to get lost in the hallways, but you made sure to remember where you came from. 

“Make yourself at home,” Scrooge said as you entered the room. “There’s a restroom right through that door and a closet through that one,” he said pointing at the specific doors. “If you need anything just ask Mrs. Beakley… or me.” 

“I’m just going to sleep and maybe take a shower before work. Thank you so much for this,” you sighed. 

“No problem for my favorite waiter,” Scrooge laughed. “I’ll let you get some rest now.” With that Scrooge left and closed the door behind him. 

You plugged in your phone and set an alarm so you had enough time to wake up, get ready, and take a bus across the city. You took the phone case off to make sure the hundred was still there. It was. You set your phone down and hopped into bed. It was soft and warm. You wiggled under the covers and within minutes you were asleep. You didn’t dream, or at least you didn’t remember any dreams. 

You slept very well and managed to wake up before your alarm went off. Once you were up you took a quick shower then got ready for work. By the time you found your way to the foyer you still had an hour before you had to leave. You figured you’d try to find Scrooge or someone just to keep company, but the mansion was huge. You didn’t want to get lost trying to find someone. 

“Can I help you?” You heard a voice ask behind you. You turned and nearly jumped out of your feathers. A nearly transparent dog man stood before you. “Please do not be alarmed. I am Duckworth. I am a ghost, but I am also the butler.” He explained. 

“You have to keep your job even in death? That sucks.” You blurted out. “If I had to stay at my job after I died I would quit on my deathbed.”

“It isn’t so bad when you don’t absolutely hate your job.” Duckworth said. “Would you like me to fetch Mr. McDuck for you?”

“Uh, no, just let him know I’ve gone to work.” You told him. 

You decided heading out early was for the best. You could go by your apartment and see if everything was okay. Rain began to fall as you got on the bus. You enjoyed the rain, but it sucked to walk home in it. Thankfully you didn’t have to walk home this time. You knew Launchpad would pick you up and take you to the mansion tonight. 

You never thought you would be staying in Scrooge McDuck’s mansion. You hadn’t known him very long, but Scrooge was already becoming a good friend. It didn’t seem like a good idea on his end to trust you so fast, but you had no malicious intent against him. 

You stopped by the apartment for only a minute. The lock was still busted. However, everything seemed to be in place. You shut the door and hopped on another bus to the diner. Work was slow that day. You saw a bunch of your usuals early in your shift, but once ten o’clock hit the diner was dead. 

For two hours you played cards with the cook. He was a mysterious guy. You never got a name from him. He was just the cook. You told him about what happened to your apartment and he offered his place for you to stay. Of course you declined and explained you were staying with a friend. 

Around one, you saw the limo pull up outside. Just like you never thought you’d be staying in a mansion, you never thought you’d be riding home from work in a limo. The diner was dead and the rain was pouring so the cook decided to let you off early. You didn’t even hesitate. You were ready to go back to the mansion and sleep again. You practically ran to the limo in hopes you wouldn’t get wet, but the rain was coming down hard. You hopped in the front seat shivering. Launchpad turned up the heat and started to drive. He offered to take you by your apartment so you could check on things. You declined. Launchpad’s driving was already kind of terrifying. You didn’t want him driving in the rain longer than he needed to be. 

“Thank you, Launchpad.” You said as you approached the mansion. “It’s late and rainy so I really do appreciate the ride.” With that, you hopped out of the limo and ran inside. Mrs. Beakley greeted you in the foyer with a towel. “Do you guys ever sleep?” You joked after thanking her for the towel.

“We’re used to being up at different times a lot,” Mrs. Beakley explained. “Time zones can be the biggest difficulty in Scrooge’s adventures.”

“So is Scrooge up?” You asked.

“I’m not sure. I’m his housekeeper not his keeper,” Mrs. Beakley scoffed. “Besides, I think it would be best for you to get some sleep.”

“You’re probably right,” you yawned. “Goodnight Mrs. Beakley. Sleep well.”

“You too dear,” she replied. 

You climbed the stairs and found your way to your room. Before changing you took the tips out of your pocket and set them on the table. You sighed remembering all the money you lost. You figured it was a smarter idea to deposit your money into a savings account. You always had sundays off so you could do it then. Having a week’s worth of tips being stolen was a lot easier to come back from than three year’s worth. You got changed then put the tip money in a bag in your suitcase. 

It felt nice to get out of your wet work clothes and into dry pajamas. The bed was warm and the sound of rain hitting the window lulled you to sleep. 

It would be easy for you to get used to living in the mansion. The bed you had was much larger than your bed at home it was also more comfortable. The room you had at the mansion was bigger than your entire apartment. Plus you didn’t have to worry about being on such a terrible side of town. You maybe had to worry about curses and other things, but you didn’t have to panic at every little noise. It was nice, but you knew you’d be back in your little apartment in no time. The thought of that actually made you a little sad.


	5. A Day in the Mansion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter instead of studying for a test so please enjoy.

You sat in bed for a while after waking up. It was Sunday. No work. No worries. You jumped out of bed and went straight to the shower. It was nice to take a shower that was actually hot. You got used to luke warm showers at your apartment. Your guest room at Scrooge’s mansion was literally the height of luxury. 

After getting dressed you decided to try to find Scrooge. The mansion was a labyrinth, but you were bound to bump into someone that could take you to Scrooge. You took one step out of your room and suddenly you were tackled to the ground by a blur of green. It was one of the duck kids. He helped you up before continuing to run.

“Run for your life!” He yelled. Seconds later Webby came barreling down the hall. You figured it be best to just let her keep going. You walked the opposite way and found another duck kid. This one was dressed in red. 

“Did you see two ducks run past here?” He asked. 

“Yeah, Webby was chasing the one in green.” You answered. 

“Well, Louie’s dead.” He said nonchalantly. “I’m Huey. You must be (y/n). Uncle Scrooge told us you’d be staying for a while.”

“Nice to meet you,” you said shaking his hand. You both heard a scream down the hall.

“I think Webby got Louie. We’re playing tag.” Huey explained with a laugh.

“Intense game,” you mumbled. “Should we go check if he’s okay?”

“It’s probably just a trap so he can tag someone else.” You heard a voice behind you. You turned to see another young duck. “I’m Dewey.” 

“And that should be all the kids here right?” You asked. 

“Yeah. Well, unless Lena comes over. She’s Webby’s best friend.” Huey explained. Webby came walking back down the hall to where you were. 

“I tagged Louie,” Webby smiled. “I said no tag backs so…” Suddenly Louie came running down the hall screaming. Huey and Dewey didn’t hesitate. They started sprinting away also screaming. 

“I told you it was just a trap!” Dewey yelled as they disappeared around the corner. 

“I bet you want to go see Mr. Mc… I mean Uncle Scrooge.” Webby said. She seemed so happy to call him Uncle Scrooge. 

“Actually yes, I’d love to see him.” You said. Webby took your hand and led you down the hallway. 

“These hallways can be really confusing if you aren’t used to them,” Webby sighed. “But lucky for you I grew up here.” Webby gave you a mini tour of the place. She pointed out different art pieces and artifacts. She talked about Donald Duck, Scrooge’s nephew and the triplets’ uncle. 

“Okay so Scrooge is Donald’s uncle and Donald is the boys’ uncle. Who’s the boys’ mom?” You asked. Webby stopped. 

“Oh, Della,” Webby whispered. “Dewey and I have been looking into what happened to her. There’s something about the Spear of Selene. The only thing is Dewey and I have talked to the goddess Selene. Della was a friend of hers, but she doesn’t know what the Spear of Selene is.”

“Hold up, you talked to a goddess?” You asked. “You’re adventures really are amazing. Anyways, Selene is the moon goddess right? Maybe it had something to do with the moon.”

“You may have a point there…” Webby trailed off. “Anyways I wouldn’t talk to Scrooge about it. He and Donald didn’t talk for years because of what happened.”

“Isn’t the easiest way to figure out what happened to ask Scrooge though?” You asked. “I mean the boys have a right to know what happened to their mom. Then again, if Donald and Scrooge didn’t talk because of it, maybe…” It was Scrooge’s fault. You didn’t say the last part out loud. You didn’t want to accuse Scrooge of anything. You especially didn’t want to do that in front of his number one fan. “I’m getting too much into this.” You laughed changing the subject. “It’s really none of my business.” 

You and Webby continued on the little tour and eventually you got to Scrooge’s home office. At that point Huey crept up behind Webby and tagged her. He claimed no tag backs. Webby excused herself and jumped into an air vent to find the other boys. Huey ran off as well. You were left outside the door. 

You hesitated for a second before knocking. You didn’t want to distract him, but you really wanted to see him. You held your breath and knocked hard enough to be heard. The door opened almost immediately. 

“Well, hello there,” Scrooge laughed nervously. 

“Eager for something Scrooge?” You joked. 

“Just to see how my guest is doing. So how are you?” He asked. 

“I’m doing pretty good. This place is amazing and the kids seem really fun. Duckworth kind of scared me when we first met. I wasn’t expecting a ghost.” You admitted. “Still this place is just wow.”

“You can stay here longer if you’d like,” Scrooge offered. 

“I don’t think I could accept that,” You said. “I’d love to, honestly, but I can’t.” 

“What if I had you pay rent then?” 

“Wait, what?”

“You pay the rent at your apartment. What if you pay rent here?” He insisted.

You hesitated for a moment. You really wanted to stay in the mansion, but Scrooge barely knew you. Why would he offer for you to stay?

“Why do you want me to stay so bad?” You asked. Scrooge was quiet for a second. 

“You seem like a very hard worker and a very nice person,” Scrooge began. “You came all the way across town and thanked me for your tip without taking any of the spilled money from the bin. Then you spent a full night just listening to me jabber on. I dinnae know why, but I feel like I can trust you. It isn’t often I find someone I feel like I can trust so quickly. I saw how devastated you were to lose everything you worked for. I couldn’t allow you to stay in your apartment with a broken lock. It’s not safe. Even with a fixed lock, that area isn’t safe.”

“You’re lucky I really am a good person,” you laughed. “I might stay. I’m not sure. It’s kind of weird to just move into someone’s home with their family when you barely know them.”

“We’ll just have to get to know each other a little more then.” Scrooge smiled. You could feel yourself blush. It was only now you realized how close you actually were to Scrooge. You laughed nervously and took a step back. 

“I guess we will,” you said. “But until then, I really should stay at my apartment. I’m usually off on Sundays. Maybe we could go on a small adventure sometime.”

“That sounds well good to me,” Scrooge remarked. “Feel free to leave some of your things in your room here. Come and go as you please.”

“Thank you Scrooge.” You concluded. You left Scrooge to his work and slowly mad your way down the hall. Huey ran past and you stopped him for a second. “Is the game still on?” You asked.

“Why else would I be running so fast?” He panted. “Webby is it again.”

“I’m joining in,” you said as if accepting a challenge.

“(y/n) is playing!” He called out. You heard Louie and Dewey answer with a faint “got it!” then you heard Webby’s muffled voice from directly above yell out “got it!” You and Huey ran in opposite directions. 

That game of tag was some of the most fun you had in a long time. When Webby was it, you ran faster than you ever ran before and she still managed to find you and tag you. She was ruthless. Eventually the game died down and you somehow found yourself helping Mrs. Beakley with laundry. You weren’t too sure how it happened, but you weren’t upset. You figured it was the least you could do since Scrooge offered to just let you live there. 

“So how do you feel about Scrooge letting a total stranger into the house?” you asked Mrs. Beakley. 

“He seems to trust you, and for the most part I trust his judgement,” she responded. “If I thought you were any threat I wouldn’t have allowed it. Besides, I almost never get help with the laundry around here.”

“Nice to know I have the Beakley approval,” you laughed. 

“The kids seem to like you so far too,” Mrs. Beakley added. “And of course Scrooge adores you.”

“Adores?” You asked.

“Maybe adores was too strong of a word, but he does like you.” Beakley smirked. “It’s nice to have him make a friend this time and not another enemy.” 

The conversation with Beakley was brief but it seemed to stick with you. It felt good to know you weren’t seen as a threat or an enemy. It also felt great to know everyone seemed to like you. You were happy.


	6. Who is Gizmoduck?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More canon stuff in the story. I honestly wasn't going to have the reader very involved in the shadow war originally, but the way things are going I might do the thing. Which means Scrooge pushing the reader away >:3 but that's still a bit away. I really need to study for a test, but I keep writing this instead so rip my gpa.

You went back to your apartment after your work shift on Monday. The lock was fixed, but you didn’t feel safe. It was broken once, it could be broken again. This time you knew better. You kept your tips in your wallet and you’d run by the bank on your way to Scrooge’s place. 

The week seemed to go by slow. By Wednesday you found yourself picking up extra shifts just to make the time go faster. It didn’t work. You were so excited to go see Scrooge Sunday that time just inched by. 

By Friday you noticed the Beagle Boys up to something. You worked a morning shift and noticed one group of Beagle Boys walking down the street with masks over their masks. You just did your best to ignore them and just get to work. About twenty minutes after your shift started you saw the same group of Beagle Boys running in the opposite direction that they went. You turned on the news and listened while you worked. 

Roxanne Featherly reported there was an issue at Duckburg National Bank involving a robot. Just wonderful, that was the bank you used. Roxanne asked a bystander if he could see “the pure evil in his cold robot eyes.” When the bystander spoke you almost dropped a plate. You knew that voice. Sure enough when you turned around Huey was on the t.v. 

Huey explained that the robot was there to help. The robot saved him. It looked like the kid had a new hero. You were thankful Huey was okay. Roxanne of course tried to keep a negative view on whatever hero this was, but you knew not to listen to her after watching her interview with Scrooge. Roxanne just wanted to get people riled up so they’d keep watching. All she cared about was viewers. 

The next day you actually saw the robot hero zipping around Duckburg. You saw him a few times right outside the diner too. At one point you noticed him just outside the Diner. A group of Beagle Boys were mugging a family. The robot tried to help but it looked like it shorted out. Something wasn’t right. 

Only an hour or so after the robot flew off a special news flash came out. There was an announcement for “Waddleduck” as it was apparently called. Mark Beaks was behind it which surprised you. Beaks was never one to help anyone. You noticed Huey protesting before Roxanne Featherly cut in. Mark Beaks announced that in order to make Waddleduck more efficient, he would personally choose who to save and who not to save. That sounded more like Beaks. Then he proceeded to shoot lasers at random into the audience. Gosh what a buffoon. 

The newscast was a little static after that then the suit started to glitch out and spark. That’s when the news coverage cut out completely. This made you nervous. You remembered that Huey was there. Huey was probably in danger. 

You tried to calm down by telling yourself Huey’s been in danger hundreds of times with Scrooge, but that didn’t work. Really it made it worse especially because it didn’t look like Scrooge was with him. It was just Huey. 

Without thinking you called out that you’d be back in a minute and you raced out the door. You weren’t concerned about the diner. There was a waitress there until nine and you figured you’d be back by then. You ran as fast as your legs would carry you. You managed to get there just in time to see one of the giant screens falling. You noticed Huey was in it’s direct line of path with someone else. 

“No!” You called out trying to run faster to get to them, but you couldn’t move fast enough. For a split second your heart stopped. Then the screen lifted.

“I am Gizmoduck!” You heard call out as the robot lifted the screen revealing Huey and the stranger to be unharmed. The robot threw the screen into Waddle and you continued running to Huey. When you finally got there Huey was launched off of Gizmoduck with a shock. You caught him, put out a small fire on his hat, and set him down.

“The suit is not Gizmoduck, you are!” Huey said to the robotic hero. “That’s a robotics badge and a philosophy badge right there.” He said back to you.

“Noted,” you responded. 

“It’s all me! I’m in control!” Gizmoduck exclaimed. 

“Core meltdown in ten, nine, eight…” the little bulb in his hand started counting down. 

“Oh no I’m in control…” Gizmoduck continued. “Scatter! This things gonna blow!” Gizmoduck flew off toward the water. Then there was an explosion. Everyone’s heart sank at the same time. 

Police and news teams showed up eventually. You sat with Officer Cabrera, the stranger that was with Huey, for a minute while Huey took over a news cast. 

“Huey told me you saved him from Beaks almost blasting him. Thank you,” you said. 

“Are you his parent?” Cabrera asked.

“Oh gosh no,” you said. “I’m a family friend. I saw him on the news and panicked a little. I wish I could thank Gizmoduck for saving him…” 

Roxanne Featherly kicked Huey off the news broadcast. He turned around and called for everyone to come over. A duck with a black eye crawled onto a dock then lost consciousness. 

“That’s my son!” Cabrera called. Two paramedics raced down the stairs and Officer Cabrera was right behind them. She hopped in the ambulance with her son and they were off to the hospital. You watched them until you could no longer see the ambulance.

“What were you doing here?” Huey asked. 

“I saw you in danger and I panicked,” you sighed. “I know you can probably totally handle stuff like this, but…” Huey cut you off with a hug.

“Thank you for worrying.” He said as he released the hug. “Really I didn’t handle it myself. Lucky for me Officer Cabrera and the real Gizmoduck were here. I can see why Uncle Scrooge likes you so much. You have a good heart.”

“Thanks,” you smiled. “Hey, if you don’t wanna walk all the way home you can come with me back to the diner until Launchpad comes by tonight. I’ll let you order anything you want free of charge.”

“Sounds good to me, I’m starving,” Huey said. You walked back to the diner and Huey sat at the bar. You weren’t too busy that night, but time still went by painfully slow. 

You got off at midnight and the limo was waiting for you and Huey. You brought a few slices cake and pie for the other kids at the mansion. You nearly dropped the desserts when you opened the door and saw Scrooge. You and Huey got in and sat down before Launchpad took off.

“What brings you out tonight Scrooge?” you asked nervously. You were worried Scrooge was upset that you kept Huey out of the mansion too long. 

“I just got back from checking on a new employee in the hospital.” Scrooge said. “A certain Gizmoduck.”

“So he’s okay?” Huey blurted.

“Aye lad and I’m thankful for that. I hired him to protect Duckburg,” Scrooge boasted. Huey was elated. 

There wasn’t much conversation in the limo after that. It was obvious everyone was tired. You must have fallen asleep at some point. When the limo came to a halt at a stop sign you woke up and realized you were resting your head on Scrooge’s shoulder. 

“Oh, sorry,” you apologized.

“Oh don’t be. You’re fine,” Scrooge whispered. The limo continued on and you put your head back on Scrooge’s shoulder. You didn’t go back to sleep. You just sat there and relaxed. 

When you got to the mansion Launchpad carried Huey in. All the other kids were already asleep so you put the sweets you brought them in the fridge. After that Scrooge took you to the den. You sat on a couch and Scrooge sat next to you.

“So Huey went with you today?” Scrooge asked. 

“After the whole Gizmoduck/Waddleduck thing yeah,” you explained. “The robot suit glitched out and the newscast I saw cut out. I was worried about Huey. I mean, I shouldn’t have been. Huey’s gone on plenty of adventures with you. I’m sure he can handle himself in a dangerous situation.”

“He’s a tough lad, and he knows when to leave. Have I told you the story of Mt. Neverrest yet?” Scrooge asked. You shook your head. “Seventy-five years ago I ventured with George Malardy up Mt. Neverrest. I wanted to be the first duck to reach the top. However, halfway up Malardy cut me loose. Thus came the legend of the Neverrest Ninny. In order to redeem myself I trekked up the mountain yet again. This time with Huey, Dewey, and Webby. Louie opted out and stayed in the tourist trap town. Mt. Neverrest is a tricky one. There are wormholes all about the place. Neverrest wouldn’t allow anyone to reach its peak. Huey figured that out and tried to pull me from my pride before I got someone killed. Which, I almost did get Webby and Dewey killed…”

“Hoped you learned your lesson from that.” You mumbled.

“I did.” Scrooge shuddered. “On a brighter note I made it farther up that mountain than anyone else and we all got down in one piece. Anyways, Huey was the one that knew enough was enough. He’s very smart. Takes after his great uncle.” Scrooge smile. “But it never hurts to have others there to help him.”

“Scrooge… you said you trust me right?” You asked. 

“So far yes,” Scrooge laughed. 

You hesitated before speaking again. You wanted to ask him about Della, but you knew that was a bad idea. You were tired and you weren’t thinking straight. You didn’t want to say something you would regret. 

“I think I’m going to go to bed,” you yawned. “It’s been a long day.”

“Let me walk you there,” Scrooge offered. You took his hand and left the den. Since the game of tag you learned a lot of different areas of the mansion. You didn’t need Scrooge to lead you to your room. You just wanted to walk with him. 

“I guess I’ll see you in the morning.” You said upon reaching your room. “Goodnight, Scrooge.”

“Goodnight, (y/n).” Scrooge said. He gave your hand a little squeeze and you squeezed back before both of you released. You watched Scrooge walk away and he kept looking back. When he was finally out of sight you shut your door and jumped into bed. You were asleep in no time.


	7. The Cancelled Adventure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say thank you to everyone leaving such positive feedback on here! This is probably one of the better things I've written and I'm so glad you guys are enjoying it. Also it's nice to know there are other people that have a crush on Scrooge McDuck <3

You woke up around eight the next morning and practically launched yourself out of bed. Beakley and Donald were taking the kids out for the day so Scrooge planned a small adventure just for you. You were beyond excited. 

After a quick shower and some clothing changes you were finally ready to leave your room. You made your way to the foyer and sat at the bottom of the steps. A few moments later Scrooge joined you.

“Are you ready?” He asked.

“Absolutely,” you cheered. “So where are we going?”

“That’s a secret,” Scrooge said with a wink. 

“Where did the kids go today?” You asked. 

“Donald took them to a museum or something. I cannae understand why when the world’s greatest museum is right here,” Scrooge snarked. He paused for a moment and checked his pocket watch. “That’s odd. Launchpad is later than usual.” 

“I hope he’s okay,” you said. Moments later there was a knock at the door. You and Scrooge answered it to find Launchpad. He didn’t look very well. 

“Alright Mr. McDee, let’s get going,” Launchpad slurred his words. He turned around to head back to the car and nearly fell. You and Scrooge acted fast and steddied him. 

“Launchpad are you doing okay?” You asked. 

“I’m sure it’s just a cold. Maybe the flu… Whoa, when did you make your driveway spin?” Launchpad asked. He almost fell again. 

“Okay buddy I’m not letting you drive right now.” You stated. You and Scrooge helped turn Launchpad back around and walked him inside. “You need to rest.”

Scrooge helped you walk Launchpad to the den. You laid him on the couch and ran to get a pillow and blanket for him. You made sure he was comfortable then turned on the television. There was a Darkwing Duck marathon on. Launchpad gasped.

“I love this show,” he whispered. 

“Get some rest,” you told him. “I’ll bring you some soup later.” You and Scrooge left the den and went to another sitting room. 

“Well, today isn’t going to go as planned,” Scrooge laughed. “Mind if we postpone this adventure?” 

“Of course I don’t mind. I want to make sure Launchpad feels better.” You stated. “Besides, I’m just happy being here with you.” You paused realizing what you said. It was true, you just liked being around Scrooge, but it felt weird to say that to him. 

“I’m happy being here with you too,” Scrooge said. “So I was thinking, since you lost all the money you were saving for college, maybe I…”

“Hold it,” You cut him off. “I couldn’t possibly let you pay for my school. I have to save for that myself.”

“Well, I wasn’t exactly going to offer to pay for your school,” Scrooge chimed in. “I was going to offer you a job. My own personal adventure photographer.”

“Wait, what?” You asked. “I don’t even have a camera yet.”

“I could supply that. It would be fun. You could quit your job at that rinky dink diner and travel with us.” Scrooge stated. 

“I.. I…” You were speechless. You really wanted to say yes, but something wouldn’t let you. “I’ll tell you what, give me three months. That’s when my apartment lease is up. If we’re still whatever we are then I’ll quit my job and work for you.”

“I can wait three months for you,” Scrooge smiled. “Our first adventure will be wherever you want to go.”

“Assuming you don’t get tired of me by then,” you laughed. 

“Me get tired of you? I don’t think so.” He grinned. 

You laughed nervously and felt yourself blush. Scrooge was such a great guy. You couldn’t wait for the three months to pass. You loved being near Scrooge. You loved his family too. You couldn’t wait to be part of the adventure. 

You checked on Launchpad a few times every hour and brought him soup around noon. Scrooge called Donald and told him to bring some medicine when he came home. The mansion was uncomfortably quiet when you walked from the kitchen to the den. It felt lonely and cold without the kids around. You wondered if Scrooge was ever bothered by this before the triplets moved in. Sure he had Webby roaming around, but before the boys came, Webby was never allowed around Scrooge. 

“What were things like before the boys came here?” You asked Scrooge. You both just got back to the sitting room from checking on Launchpad.

“It was quiet and calm,” Scrooge said. “And boring. Looking back I should have involved Webbigail in more things. Maybe then I wouldn’t have been the crotchety old man I became.” He gave a little laugh. “Donald bringing those boys here was one of the greatest blessings of my life.”

“So why…” You stopped yourself again. It was none of your business why Donald and Scrooge stopped talking. 

“Why did Donald and I stop talking?” Scrooge continued your thought. He sighed. “Something happened to the boys’ mom.” Scrooge gave you a painful look. He obviously didn’t want to talk about this. 

“You don’t have to tell me what happened.” You assured him. “When the time comes you’ll be able to talk about it.”

“So what about your family?” Scrooge asked. 

“Oh, um,” you cleared your throat. “I never really had a family. I never knew my mom and my dad didn’t know how to raise me. I was passed around from relative to relative. Some I don’t think were actually relatives. I never stayed in one place long enough to get close to anyone. As soon as I could I start working I did. I got my apartment and I got my GED. Then I started saving for college and you know the rest. Oh, but-” You reached into your pocket and pulled out your phone. You popped it out of the case and held up the hundred dollar bill. “-I had this with me instead of in the box so it got saved.”

“The hundred that I gave you?” Scrooge asked. 

“Yeah,” you laughed. “It may be silly, but it inspired me. That night at the bin when I thanked you for it and told you I was saving up for college you just looked so proud. No one ever looked at me like that before. I wanted to keep working hard and make you proud. I never would have thought this hundred dollar bill would start such an amazing friendship.”

The more you talked to Scrooge the more you felt like you could open up to him. You knew the feelings you had for him were very strong. 

“I’m glad we decided to stop in that diner that night,” Scrooge admitted. “The boys were one blessing in my life, and you are definitely another.”


	8. Almost

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for a shortish chapter. It's a pretty good on though >:3

The next Sunday you went back to the mansion, but you ended up leaving because Mrs. Beakley told you to. The boys and Scrooge were all sick. You offered to help take care of them, but Mrs. Beakley told you to just go home. She didn’t want you to get sick and have to miss work. 

So you had to wait yet another week to see Scrooge again. You got a calendar and bagan counting down the days to when you could quit your job and join Scrooge on his adventures. You were so happy that Scrooge gave you this offer. You were kind of mad at yourself for not accepting it right then and there. However, you knew you shouldn’t jump into it so fast. You were still getting to know Scrooge. Waiting was the best idea. 

The next week actually went by fast. Before you knew it you were on a bus to the mansion. You got there just as everyone was settling in from their most recent adventure. Apparently there were sky pirates involved this time. Webby and the boys told you the whole story before running along to do their own thing. Dewey ran off with the pirates and no one even noticed. It was a pretty cool adventure. 

When the kids went upstairs you spotted Scrooge. You made eye contact and both of you smiled. You practically ran to Scrooge and wrapped him in a hug. You were just happy to see him. 

“So how are you feeling Scroogey?” You asked. 

“Better than ever. Well, for now at least,” Scrooge said. His whole mood changed in that moment.

“Whoa is something wrong?” You asked. 

“It’s just,” Scrooge sighed. “Next week I’ll be taking a trip to look for the treasure of the Knights Templar. I can only try to look for it every five years. There’s just a catch. It’s hidden somewhere in Castle McDuck. I have to go see my parents.”

“Geez does anyone in your family line die?” You laughed. “How are your parents still alive? Aren’t you like a hundred years old or something?”

“Thanks to me they were granted immortality, not that they actually thanked me,” Scrooge grumbled. “My father and I have a wee bit of a strained relationship. I’m glad to go on a hunt for treasure, but I’m not so thrilled to see my parents. You wouldn’t by chance be free next Saturday? I’d probably feel better with you there.”

“Nope. Still two and a half months until I’m free to treasure hunt with you.” You smiled. “I’m sure you’ll be fine. Just try talking to your dad. I’m sure your parents are excited to see you. Especially since it’s been five years… Why do you have to wait five years?”

“The fog on the Dismal Downs is too thick to navigate. It only lightens once every five years,” he explained. 

“Oh wow. Well if things don’t go well then in another five years I’ll be by your side.” You reassured him. 

“I’m looking forward to it,” Scrooge smiled. “Anyways, we probably won’t be back until Monday morning. If you want to stay at the castle next Sunday you still can. It’ll just be you, Beakley, Ducksworth, and Donald.”

“Eh maybe,” You debated.

“Oh do you only come over here for me?” Scrooge teased. 

“What makes you think I’m not here for the kids?” You laughed. “Truth be told I am mostly here for you. I like being around you.”

You realized how close you were standing to Scrooge. You didn’t move back or anything this time. You looked at Scrooge and it felt like the world melted away. You both closed your eyes and leaned in. Then…

“Oh will you two get a room!” You heard Mrs. Beakley call behind you. You turned to see her and Duckworth standing behind you. You and Scrooge were both blushing. 

“How long have you two been keeking at us?” Scrooge asked. 

“Since the hug,” Duckworth stated. 

“Well, this is awkward,” you laughed nervously. “I’ll just see my way to my room now.” You didn’t hesitate. You flew up the stairs and made your way to your room. You shut the door and leaned against it. Just seconds ago you were centimeters away from Scrooge. Had Beakley not said anything, you would have kissed. 

You slid down and sat by your door. You remembered how it felt to be so close to him. Just thinking about him made your pulse race. You thought you were just friends. You didn’t even think he felt this strongly about you. 

Suddenly, there was a knock at your door. You panicked. For some reason you didn’t want it to be Scrooge. You scrambled to your feet and took a deep breath before opening the door… It was just Webby. You gave a sigh of relief. 

“Hey there, Webby. What brings you by?” You asked. 

“Oh, nothing,” Webby said. “So you and Uncle Scrooge huh?”

Oh crap.


	9. Let's Talk

“So you and Uncle Scrooge huh?” Webby asked. You pulled her into your room and shut the door. 

“What did you see?” You asked her.

“Just you and Scrooge nearly kissing!” Webby yelled. You shushed her and she continued in a whisper. “I knew this would happen! The day he insisted on going back to the diner I knew he had a thing for you! This is incredible!”

“Webby, calm down,” you said. “Don’t get too excited about it. We just got caught up in a moment and it didn’t actually happen.”

“Only because my granny cut in,” Webby babbled. “Scrooge really likes you. I’m sure if you and Scrooge were alone again it would happen… Do you want it to happen?”

“Of course,” you answered a little faster than you should have. 

“See you love him!” Webby exclaimed. 

“I don’t know about love, but I really do like him,” you admitted. “Just don’t mention this to the boys or anyone really. I’m not sure if this will actually go anywhere.”

“My lips are sealed,” Webby promised you.

“How did you even see us?” You asked her.

“I was in the vent.” Webby admitted with a laugh. She was a strange girl, but that wasn’t a bad thing. There was another knock at your door. You opened it and found Scrooge.

“Oh, hi,” you said awkwardly. 

“I’ll leave you two alone,” Webby said. She slid out of the room and walked down the hallway. 

“Can we talk?” Scrooge asked. “I just want to make sure you’re okay. You ran out of there pretty fast.”

“Yeah sorry about that. I think I panicked.” You laughed nervously. “So what does this make us? I mean obviously we like each other. Are we going to do anything about it?”

“I… dinnae know.” Scrooge said. “We still have two and a half months after all.” He gave a small laugh. “I think we should wait until our first adventure to see if we should go any further. Who knows, you may not like the adventure life.”

“I think that’s the best idea,” you smiled. “This is going to be a very long two and a half months. Can I just finish one piece of business before the wait?”

“Sure,” Scrooge said confused. You leaned forward and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. Suddenly you heard Webby cheer from down the hall. You and Scrooge were both all smiles. Scrooge continued on his way and Webby was right on his heel. You shut your door and laid on your bed. 

You couldn’t believe you did that. You already knew the news would spread around the mansion pretty fast. You were glad you did it though. You couldn’t wipe the smile off your face. You just had to wait two and a half months. 

The day carried on and before you knew it you were on your way home Monday morning. You couldn’t wait until you didn’t have to go back to your terrible apartment. You also couldn’t wait for your first adventure. You never imagined this is how your life would be. You always saw yourself saving up money and working through college until you got to your dream job. You never would have guessed you’d befriend the richest duck in Duckburg. It was all thanks to a chance meeting in the diner. 

Monday evening you went into work and everything flowed as usual. That is until the evening news with Roxanne Featherly. You heard Scrooge’s name, but it didn’t phase you. Roxanne always tried to make him look bad. Then you heard your name. 

“That’s right, (y/n) has been seen leaving the McDuck Manor multiple times, and has even been seen taking care of McDuck’s great nephews.” Roxanne babbled. There were pictures of you leaving the mansion and one of you with Huey walking to the diner. You stood in shock. You had no idea there were people taking pictures of you. Suddenly you felt even less safe outside of the mansion. 

“If I didn’t know better I’d say Scrooge…” You shut off the television before Roxanne finished her sentence. You were angry. Not so much at the fact people thought you and Scrooge were together. You didn’t care what they thought. You liked Scrooge anyways. You were angry that Roxanne was trying to use you to hurt Scrooge’s image.

After your shift you immediately called Launchpad for a ride to the news station. You were tired and probably weren’t thinking straight, but you were going to do something. You knew the first newscast started at four in the morning so the station would be open. Roxanne’s first segment always went on at six in the morning. You were ready to give her the interview she was looking for. 

“Thanks for the ride at such short notice Launchpad,” you said. “Please don’t tell Scrooge where you took me.”

“Uh, I don’t really like keeping secrets from Mr. McDee,” Launchpad stated. 

“Okay, well if he asks go ahead and tell him. I guess it doesn’t matter since I’ll probably be on television,” you realized. When the car came to a stop you had second thoughts about what you were doing. You looked at the news station and took a deep breath. 

You thanked Launchpad again before getting out of the limo. You walked up the steps then heard a crash. You turned and saw Launchpad running to you. The limo was mostly in a parking spot and kind of against a wall.

“What are you doing?” You asked him.

“Mr. McDee would probably be mad if anything happened to you,” he said. “Also you took care of me when I was sick. I owe you.” It was nice to have some support with what you were doing. It also didn’t hurt that Launchpad looked like your bodyguard. 

You told the receptionist you were there to be interviewed by Roxanne and she let you in no problem. It was a little worrying that you got in so easily. It was a bit of a wait in the green room before Roxanne actually showed up. You and Launchpad chatted while he ate the whole bowl of candy sitting in the room. He offered you some but you were too nervous to eat anything. You were seriously doubting what you were even doing there. When you were on the verge of just leaving Roxanne walked in.

“Oh, what a lucky day,” Roxanne said. “The receptionist told me my interviewee was here and I was confused. Now, I’m excited.”

“Look Roxanne I’m just here to clear some stuff up,” you said. “I’ll give you a good show and some good gossip, but if you go too far you will regret it. I’m running on three cups of coffee and no sleep so I’m not ready to mess around.”

“Hm, a duck who knows what they’re after. You remind me of myself when I was younger,” Roxanne smiled. “Just relax, this will just be a conversation.”

Some crew members did your makeup on set so you didn’t look so tired. Launchpad stood just off set with a donut he snagged from the craft services table. Roxanne sat opposite you. She gave a reassuring smile that actually seemed genuine. You felt nervous as the cameraman counted down, but you were too tired to really care. 

“Good morning Duckburg, this is Roxanne Featherly and you’re watching Roxanne’s Red Chair Report,” Roxanne started. She was so confident. “Today we have a special surprise guest who only recently became someone of importance, (y/n).” That was a slight dig, but you could handle it.

“Good morning Roxanne, thank you so much for having me here today,” you said in your fakest happy voice. 

“So there’s no point in beating around the bush. Let’s get down to what everyone wants to know. What’s going on between you and Scrooge?” Roxanne asked. 

“As of right now Scrooge and I are just friends. I’ve been coming and going from his mansion because we’ve been discussing the possibility of me working as his photographer. I start in two and a half months.” You said proudly. 

“So money bags Scrooge is paying you to be around him,” Roxanne stated. 

“Actually no. Right now we’re just friends. I’m not technically employed yet,” you corrected. “Scrooge is actually really nice and he plans on creating more jobs here in Duckburg. He’s already hired Gizmoduck to protect the city.” 

“So Scrooge was behind the Gizmoduck fiasco?” Roxanne asked trying to corner you. 

“Oh no, that was Mark Beaks. He tried profiting off of ‘Waddleduck’ as he called it, but the man in the suit didn’t like that.” You explained. 

“Do you know who Gizmoduck is?” Roxanne asked.

“I do not. I never saw him outside of the suit.” You said. That was kind of a lie. You knew the man that crawled out of the water and onto the dock was the man inside Gizmoduck. You also knew his mom, but you thought it was best not to tell anyone that. 

“Well, thank you for clearing things up,” Roxanne said. She looked a little lost. “When we come back I will be moving into the kitchen to show you how to make a morning smoothie that will really get you going.” Roxanne smiled until the camera went off. 

“You went easy on me,” you laughed. “I’ve seen you tear people to shreds. You went easy on me.” 

“What can I say? You were able to think fast and shut me down.” Roxanne smiled. “Like I said, you remind me of myself. Just be careful around Scrooge. I’d hate to see you get hurt by someone like him.”

With that Roxanne left to her next segment. You left with Launchpad and he grabbed a whole box of donuts. Launchpad offered to drive you home but you told him just to take you to the mansion. It was closer anyways. You could sleep then take the bus to work later. 

You got to the mansion and dragged yourself up the stairs. You didn’t even notice if anyone was around. You were dead tired and ready for the nice, soft bed. Your head hit the pillow and you were out like a light.


	10. Donald

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was going to be a much longer chapter but I decided to end it where it is. I am having a lot of fun writing this and seeing you guys leave such positive feedback really warms my heart.

You woke up in a great mood and rushed out of your room. You headed down to Scrooge’s office and knocked. He seemed a little irritated when he answered the door, but once he saw it was you he perked right up and wrapped you in a hug.

“What are you doing here?” Scrooge asked.

“I had an interview this morning and I decided to stay here because it was closer to the news station,” you explained. “I’m headed out but I wanted to see you before you left to see your parents.”

“That’s sweet. What interview did you have?” He asked.

“Heh, that’s a bit of a story,” you said. “Roxanne Featherly did a story last night that kind of used me to make you look bad. When I got off work I was tired and angry so I called Launchpad to take me to the news studio. I interviewed with Roxanne briefly and she kind of went easy on me. I cleared up that as of right now we’re just friends. Of course that story may change in a couple of months, but we can cross that bridge when we get to it.”

“You handled Roxanne Featherly?” Scrooge was shocked.

“Yeah, she said I kind of remind her of herself,” you smiled. 

“I’m glad she didn’t rip you to bits,” Scrooge said. “Very odd for Ms. Featherly. Anyways, you should get going. I’ll see you Monday morning bright and early.” You hugged Scrooge again before leaving. 

The rest of the week was a blur. You just went through the motions. Friday afternoon Scrooge stopped by with the kids and Launchpad to eat before they took off. Scrooge said he just wanted to see you one more time. He said you calmed him. The boys playfully teased Scrooge for having a crush. Webby just seemed elated to see you two interacting. You were sad to see them go, but you knew they would be back Monday morning. 

Saturday night you were able to get off work early so you could take a bus to the mansion. It was probably going to be a little awkward without Scrooge or the kids there, but you didn’t want to go back to your apartment. You wanted to sleep well and take a hot shower. 

Mrs. Beakley let you in the gate and halfway to the door it started to rain. You started to run. By the time you reached the door it was pouring outside. Mrs. Beakley made sure to have the door open so you could just run inside. 

“You know Scrooge isn’t here right?” Mrs. Beakley asked. 

“I don’t come here just for Scrooge,” you said. “Besides I figured I’d come see how you and Duckworth manage working for Scrooge since it looks like I’ll be employed soon.”

“You won’t exactly be employed since you’ll be dating him.” Beakley stated. 

“We won’t necessarily be dating.” You clarified. 

“Oh come now, I saw you two the other day. If you’re interested him now just wait until the old crone saves you after putting your life in danger,” she snarked. Suddenly the front door opened and slammed shut. A duck in a sailor suit stood drenched. This must have been Donald.

“Why are all the other doors locked?” He asked. It was kind of hard to understand him.

“Oh, I’m sorry Donald, I must have locked them all after everyone left.” Mrs. Beakley said deadpan. “I’ll get you a towel.” She walked out of the room for a minute. 

“Hi,” you said taking the opportunity to introduce yourself. You hadn’t met Donald yet, which was surprising considering how often you went to the mansion. “I’m (y/n).”

“Oh, hello. You’re Scrooge’s friend right?” Donald asked as he shook your hand. 

“Yeah, and you must be Donald. I’ve heard a lot about you from Scrooge and the kids,” you said. 

“Scrooge told you about me?” Donald asked almost shocked. 

“Of course. He’s your uncle.” You stated. Mrs. Beakley came back with a towel and Donald dried off. “So, I know this is none of my business, but what happened between you and Scrooge?” You asked Donald. The mood of the whole room seemed to change. 

“It’s a long story,” Donald said.

“Er, why don’t I make you two some tea and you can talk in the sitting room,” Mrs. Beakley offered. You and Donald accepted. Once in the sitting room you insisted Beakley stay with you guys. She accepted despite looking uncomfortable. 

“You don’t have to tell me the whole story,” you said. 

“You probably wouldn’t like Scrooge very much if I did,” Donald grumbled. “The boys’ mom is the reason Scrooge and I stopped talking. Her name was Della. She and Scrooge cared more about the adventures than they cared about the boys. They were just eggs when Della…” Donald trailed off. 

“Hey, it’s okay,” you comforted him. “You really don’t have to tell me. If I stick around I’m sure I’ll find out sooner or later.”

“Scrooge doesn’t know his limits when it comes to his adventures,” Donald sighed. 

You thought Scrooge might have pushed Della too far. Scrooge himself even said Huey had to tell him to stop on Neverrest and even then Scrooge didn’t listen. You felt a little concerned, but obviously Scrooge was trusted with the kids so he probably wasn’t solely to blame. 

“Sorry for bringing that up,” you said. “I am glad you and Scrooge are at least on speaking terms now. If he wasn’t adventuring again, I would have never met him and I would have never known this incredible family. You managed to raise three amazing boys, Donald, and Mrs. Beakley, Webby is an amazing girl. This family is just amazing.”

“The kids seem to love having you here.” Mrs. Beakley told you. “Even if things don’t work out between you and Scrooge I hope you stick around.”

“What do you mean things between them and Scrooge?” Donald asked. “Are you two dating?”

“No, we’re just friends for now,” you said. 

“‘For now’ being the operative term,” Mrs. Beakley chuckled. 

You managed to change the subject by asking Donald about the boys. He perked up so much talking about them. He pulled out his phone and showed you dozens of pictures of each of the boys doing different things. He had so much love for these triplets. Donald may have been their uncle, but he was definitely a father to them. He rambled on for a good two hours. It kind of reminded you of that one night in the diner. 

Scrooge rambled on about the kids and their adventures that night. He also rambled a bit about Donald. He didn’t mention the old adventures, but he did mention how well Donald was doing with the boys. Scrooge was honestly surprised it took Donald this long to get help with them.

When Donald had finally finished talking about the boy and you all finished your tea, you all went your own ways. You went to your room so you could relax a while. You wondered how Scrooge was doing. It was strange to be in the mansion without him. You wanted to call him, but you knew he’d be in an area with no service. You remembered Mrs. Beakley being so sure you and Scrooge would get together. She was probably right. You still had a couple of months to wait and you were sure in that time you’d get even closer to Scrooge.


	11. The Other Bin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say this is one of my favorite chapters so far. I love Scrooge so much omg. I am twenty years old and I adore these cartoon ducks.

Sunday went by slowly. Normally you enjoyed a long day off, but when you were waiting for Monday morning a long Sunday was killer. You decided to keep yourself busy. You helped Mrs. Beakley with the laundry and a few other chores here and there, you managed to clean and re-organize all of your stuff, and you even helped Donald fix up his boat. You did so much and figured the day would be over already. However, when you looked at a clock, it was only noon. 

You sat in the den and watched t.v. for a while but it couldn’t hold your attention. You kept checking the time over and over. You just couldn’t wait to see Scrooge. You honestly didn’t think you’d miss him this much. 

Late that night you wandered aimlessly around the mansion. You couldn’t sleep. Somehow you made your way to the garage. You made sure not to touch anything while you looked around. There were all sorts of crazy things in there. You figured they were the kinds of things you should expect to see on adventure. 

It was dark in the garage and difficult to avoid things. Eventually you bumped into something. Thankfully it was just a pole for a rope barrier. You picked it up and the top twisted with a click. You looked at the bottom and saw a key sticking out of it. You looked around checking if there was anything it could be used on. That’s when you spotted the painting. You knew it was a terrible idea, but curiosity got the better of you. You stuck the key in the lock on the painting. It opened and you went inside. 

A spiral staircase led you to an enormous hall lined with hundreds of doors. Each door had a number above it. You had no idea what this place was, but you didn’t have a good feeling about it. Instead of turning back you just kept walking forward. 

You reached one particular door and stopped. You ran your fingers across it and with a shaking hand you opened it. Behind the door was a foreign environment with two plant like creatures. It took a moment for them to notice you. They looked back and forth at each other and at you before they suddenly charged. You froze. 

You tried moving your arm to slam the door shut but you couldn’t. Just as the creatures reached you the door slammed shut. Scrooge moved in your line of vision. 

“You’re going to need better reflexes than that on an adventure,” Scrooge laughed. 

“Scrooge!” You cheered as you threw your arms around him. “I’m so happy to see you… I’m in trouble aren’t I?” You didn’t let go of Scrooge.

“Of course not but what in the blazes are you doing in here?” Scrooge asked. You finally let go of him. 

“I went exploring,” You said simply. “This place was really easy to get to. I tripped over the pole that was a key and I just looked for where it would go. I learned my lesson about snooping though. What are you doing back? Is it Monday morning already?”

“No, well yes,” Scrooge said. “It’s passed midnight so technically yes. We got back earlier than expected. Good thing we did.” Scrooge took your hand and began to lead you back down the hall. 

“So what is this place?” You asked him.

“It’s my other bin.” He stated. “It’s where I lock away some of the things I find while out adventuring. It’s mostly the most dangerous things. Sometimes I store my number one dime in here.” 

“Number one dime?” You asked. Scrooge stopped dead in his tracks.

“Have I never mentioned my dime to you?” Scrooge asked. You shook your head. He grabbed a dime from around his neck. “This dime. I’ve never mentioned it?”

“Nope,” you said. 

“That is… strange. I talk about it a lot,” Scrooge babbled. “Anyways, this is my number one dime. It was the first dime I ever made. I cleaned the ditch digger’s boots diligently to earn it. I recently learned my dad gave it to the ditch digger to give to me. It means the world to me… Have I really never told you about it?”

“Now you have,” you laughed. You took his hand again and continued on your way out of the other bin. “How did you know I was in here?”

“Duckworth noticed you go into the garage so I came to find you. The entrance door was ajar and I put two and two together.” Scrooge explained. “I’m very happy to see you.”

“I’m happy to see you too,” you smiled. 

“Let’s go on an adventure,” Scrooge said. “Just you and me right now. Anywhere you want to go.”

“I have work later today and we made an agreement. We still have two months,” you reminded him. 

“I know, I know. I just cannae wait,” Scrooge sighed. “Just one adventure. Call into work and I’ll pay you what you would have made. Just a trial adventure. Then I will gladly wait the remaining two months.”

“I don’t know,” you said. “Can it wait until we both get some sleep? And I assume Launchpad will be taking us so he needs sleep too.” 

“I guess you’re right,” Scrooge groaned. “We’ll wait until the morning. Then we set off. Wherever you want to go.”

You hesitated for a moment despite already knowing your answer. 

“Let’s do it,” you agreed. Scrooge was elated. 

Scrooge walked you back to your room and held your hand the whole way. When you got to your door you didn’t want to let go of him. You were tired, but you didn’t care. All you cared about was the fact in a matter of hours you’d be off to anywhere in the world with Scrooge McDuck. 

“Goodnight, (y/n),” Scrooge said. He gave you a quick peck on the cheek before letting you go in your room. You shut your door and nearly screamed from excitement. You couldn’t believe how happy you were. You wanted to stick to the two months, but if your first adventure was good enough you were willing to drop everything in an instant and join Scrooge as fast as possible.


	12. Much Ado About Scrooge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I took some inspiration from a 1987 episode for this chapter. I'm not super great at writing the adventure stuff apparently lmao.  
> Tomorrow is the new episode !! I'm super excited. Also I'm working on a Scrooge cosplay because Ducktales has taken over my life. I'm even thinking of changing my Tumblr url to something ducktales related (even though I just changed it oof).

You were so excited you could hardly sleep. Which was kind of a good thing. You were able to stay up for a while and decide where you should go. First thing Monday morning you called the diner to tell them you couldn’t come in to work. You also took Tuesday off just in case. You hardly ever took days off so you figured it wouldn’t hurt. You got ready quickly and nearly ran to the foyer. You could hear Scrooge and Mrs. Beakley arguing as you raced down the stairs. 

“We’re both adults. We don’t need a chaperone,” Scrooge groaned. “Besides, we have Launchpad.” Beakley turned to Launchpad then back to Scrooge with her arms crossed. 

“I’m still sending Donald with you.” Beakley persisted. 

“Donald is coming with us? Is that a good idea?” You asked. You knew Donald and Scrooge hadn’t been on the best of terms even now. You didn’t want things to get tense. 

“It doesn’t matter if it’s a good idea or not, he’s going,” Mrs. Beakley stated. Donald entered the room and look about as happy as Scrooge was about this. 

“Let’s get this over with,” Donald grumbled. This was going to be a fun trip… 

“Have you decided where we’re going?” Scrooge asked. 

“Actually, yeah. I was looking up some stuff last night and I found that there’s rumor of a lost William Drakespeare play,” you started to explain. You pulled out a map of London that you marked up. “I looked at both the Curtain Theatre and the Globe Theatre for answers. The trap door in the Globe Theatre leads to all sorts of tunnels under London. If Drakespeare stashed the lost play, all signs point to it being in the tunnels.”

“You looked into all of this last night?” Scrooge asked taking a look at the map.

“Yeah, it seemed interesting,” you said simply.

“Well, let’s load up the plane. We have about a seven hour flight ahead of us.” Scrooge said. 

“Geez, I’m glad I took Tuesday off too,” you laughed. You, Scrooge, Donald, and Launchpad grabbed some bags and headed out of the mansion. 

“Please don’t get (y/n) killed!” Mrs. Beakley called out. Really you weren’t worried at all. You didn’t think this was that dangerous of an adventure. 

The plane ride was uncomfortably quiet. This was probably the first time Scrooge and Donald were together in one place without the kids. The tension was suffocating. You tried to escape it by sitting with Launchpad for a while, but watching Launchpad nearly crash four times made you slink back to Scrooge and Donald. 

“Are you doing alright?” Scrooge asked. 

“Yeah, I-I’m fine,” you responded. This was kind of a lie. You were excited, but between the tension and the fear of crashing you weren’t doing so well. Scrooge put an arm around you to comfort you some. 

“This… is weird,” Donald said. This time he went to sit with Launchpad. 

“So what were adventures like before you and Donald stopped talking?” You asked Scrooge. 

“They were just as much fun with all the same danger,” Scrooge smiled. “I really missed doing all of this.”

“Why did you stop?” You asked. 

“...Donald and I lost someone…” Scrooge lamented. “That’s why we stopped talking and why I locked myself away.” You knew he was talking about Della. You decided not to pry anymore. You just wanted to enjoy the ride with Scrooge by your side. 

The landing in London was less than ideal. Launchpad managed to nearly hit Big Ben on his way down. You were just grateful you all made it in once piece. It was cool to be in a new place, but you didn’t bother with sightseeing. You all made your way to the Globe Theatre. There was no show going on, but Scrooge still managed to get you all inside. 

The theatre was beautiful. You snapped a few pictures with your phone while you were there. Scrooge hopped on the stage and opened the trap door that led below the stage. He helped you onto the stage. Donald and Launchpad followed right behind. Scrooge jumped into the hole first then helped you down. Again Donald and Launchpad were right behind. You pulled out your map and Scrooge pulled out a flashlight. 

“Okay to the tunnels to the left and right lead back into the theatre and one leads to backstage,” you explained. “The last one is the one we want to go down. It splits off to several different passageways that run all over London.”

“So which way do we go?” Donald asked. 

“Anyway we went to,” you replied. “I brought some rope so we can find our way back and some paint so we can mark which tunnel we’ve already been in.”

“Sounds like we have a natural born adventurer here,” Scrooge smiled. “So what are we waiting for? Let’s get going.” 

You walked to the entrance of the tunnel and noticed it was boarded up. Scrooge took his cane and pried the boards off with it. You tied your rope to one of the broken boards and tugged to make sure it was secure. 

You were the first one to go into the tunnel. You were shocked to see that there weren’t any spiderwebs or any signs of insects. You didn’t know if you should be happy about that of concerned. 

“Are you guys ready?” You asked. You took the first step into the tunnel. The scent of dirt and dust hung in the air. You let the rope drop from your arm as you walked. 

“So what are we looking for here?” Launchpad asked. 

“The lost play of William Drakespeare,” you responded. 

“Uh huh,” Launchpad said. “Who’s that?”

“William Drakespeare, the guy that wrote Romeo and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing, Othello, and like thirty other plays,” you explained.

“Not to mention the sonnets,” Scrooge added. 

“Oh, never heard of him,” Launchpad said. 

“Well now you have,” you told him. “And we’re here to find his lost play. If it actually exists.”

When you reached a split in the tunnels you always went left first. Some of the tunnels led to dead ends. When they did you all backtracked to the opening and you used the paint to mark that you’ve been down there. The third tunnel you went down led to a small room. The door opened without a problem and you all piled in. There was a desk and a few file cabinets. You all started to search through them, but they were all empty. 

You went back and took tunnel after tunnel. A lot of them seemed to just lead to dead ends but a few led to more rooms. One room led into another that led into a tunnel. You followed it around and found your rope again, but something was off. The rope led directly into a wall. You tugged on the side in your hand and the part leading into the wall moved. 

“This is odd,” you said. “I don’t remember going through the wall.” You painted the part of the rope in your hand then let it go. You pulled the other part out of the wall and soon enough you held the end again. 

“These walls are changing,” Scrooge stated. 

“Do you want to head back?” Donald asked. 

“Not yet,” you said. “I think we can look for a little bit longer. Stay close just in case the paths change. We don’t want to get separated down here.”

You carried on into the labyrinth. You started to notice your own rope more and more. The tunnels were taking you back to the entrance. You refused to leave yet. You still hadn’t looked at half the tunnels down there. You didn’t want to get carried away so you looked for one more room to search through before giving up. 

It was almost an hour before you found a room. You were so excited you nearly ran to it. Once you were inside, then door slammed shut and a wall dropped in front of it. 

“Oh no…” You whispered to yourself. “Scrooge?!” You called out.

“(Y/n)! Are you okay?!” You heard Scrooge muffled on the other side.

“I’m fine!” You yelled in response. “I think I’m stuck in here!” You tried finding a way to move the wall, but you couldn’t find one. “Okay yeah, I am definitely stuck in here!”

“Try to find another exit! We’ll try to find another way in,” Scrooge said. 

“No, no don’t leave me here,” you panicked. 

“(Y/n), you’ll be okay. I promise. I just need to find a way to get you out.” Scrooge reassured. “We’ll be right back.”

“Okay… I trust you. Be safe guys!” You yelled out. You grabbed your phone and turned on the flashlight. You checked all the walls for some sort of exit, but it didn’t look promising. You decided you might as well check the room for anything of interest. 

This room seemed to be the oldest of all the rooms you came across. There was a dry inkwell and quill pen sitting on the desk. There weren’t any cabinets, but there was a bookshelf. You studied some of the books and began moving them in hopes it would trigger a hidden door. 

Nothing happened. 

You moved the bookshelf, but there was nothing behind it. You sat at the desk and looked around it. A skull sat near the dry inkwell. You were surprised you didn’t see it before.

“Alas poor Yorick…” You quoted from Hamlet. You grabbed the skull and when it moved you heard a click. A compartment opened in the middle of the desk and inside was a handbound manuscript. There was no title, but there was a signature: William Drakespeare.

You could have screamed. The lost play was real. You began to read through it since you had nothing else to do. In the second Act, one of the characters was locked in dungeon of sorts, but they escaped by using a quill pen as a key. You took this as a clue. You grabbed the quill and felt along the wall in front of the door for a keyhole. Sure enough, you found one. The wall went up and you ran out the door.

“Scrooge!” You called out. You started sprinting down the hall following your rope. “Donald! Launchpad!” You yelled as loud as you could.

“(Y/n)?” you heard echo down the hall. You followed where the sound came from. All three of the guys started calling your name so you could find them. When you finally spotted them you ran into Scrooge’s arms. 

“How did you get out?” Scrooge asked. 

“Let’s just say Drakespeare left a clue.” You said as you held up the manuscript. “The pen is mightier than the sword, and by that I mean the quill was a key that got me out of the room.” You explained. “Now let’s get out of here.” No one argued with you. They were all ready to get out of there. 

You followed the rope all the way back to the entrance with minimal obstructions. From there you left the Globe and want back to the plane. You were too tired to even think about going anywhere else in London. Besides, you knew you’d be back again someday on another adventure with Scrooge.


	13. A Quick Two Weeks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will admit part of this chapter is majorly rushed. There are two reasons for this: I had a lot of caffeine and I am getting to a major area of the story. This was going to be a better chapter, but I lost focus on it a lot and this is what I got.

The plane ride home was a little more quiet. You fell asleep on Scrooge’s should a few hours into it and didn’t wake up until you were home. You could tell you were falling for him. Honestly you were ready to quit your job right as soon as you got home, but you still knew waiting until your lease was up would be best. 

When you got to the mansion it was Tuesday morning. You felt so happy to be back. You kind of just threw your things in your room so you could go hang out with Scrooge more. However, on the way to Scrooge’s study, you were stolen by Webby. 

“How did you like your very first adventure?” Webby beamed. 

“It was a lot of fun!” You said. “I could have died… but still it was fun!”

“You were with two seasoned adventurers. They wouldn’t let you die,” Webby laughed. “So did Scrooge save you?”

“Actually I kind of saved myself,” you smiled. “Also I got this.” You pulled out Drakespeare's lost play.

“You actually found it!” Webby practically yelled. “This is amazing. I hope we can go on adventure.”

“I promise you we will. I’m definitely sticking around now,” you affirmed. Webby cheered. “Webby, do you want to come with me to look over the play with Scrooge?”

“Would I?!” Webby yelled. She grabbed your arm and practically dragged you to Scrooge’s office. Webby was always so excited about these things. When you reached Scrooge’s study Mrs. Beakley told Webby that Lena was here. Webby asked if Lena could join and you agreed. You hadn’t met Lena yet, but she was Webby’s best friend so you already had a positive idea of her. 

Lena seemed pretty cool, but you weren’t around her too long. She and Webby took off after a little while.That meant you and Scrooge were finally alone. 

“So Scroogey, how did I do?” You laughed. 

“You did very well for your first adventure,” Scrooge smiled. “You had me worried for a bit, but I knew you could pull through. You’re a natural born adventurer. Is there any possibility you’ll be joining the team sooner than expected?”

“It’s tempting. It really is,” you expressed. “I loved exploring with you. I love being around you in general to tell the truth, but I think I should wait until my lease is up.”

“I love being around you too,” Scrooge said. “You know you’re part of this family now right?”

“You are making it so hard for me to wait to fully move in,” you laughed. 

“If you want to join in, we’re taking a vacation to Monacrow in a couple of weeks,” Scrooge offered. “If not you’re welcome to stay here. Donald will be fixing his boat and Duckworth will be about, but other than that we’ll all be in Monacrow.” 

“I’ll pass on this one,” you said. “But I’ll catch the next one for sure. I should probably get my stuff ready for work in a few hours. I’ll see you Sunday.” You gave Scrooge a quick peck on the cheek before leaving his study. You left the lost play with him. On the way back to your room Dewey and Webby stopped you and dragged you to the boys’ room. Huey, Louie, and Lena sat inside already. 

“Webby, how many times are you going to abduct me today?” You asked with a laugh. 

“We know more about the Spear of Selene,” Webby said. 

“What?” You asked. 

“I talked to Huey and Louie about it and Huey did a pencil rubbing of the back of the letter from our mom and well…” Dewey handed you the paper. 

“Oh come on! They knew about it and not us?” Louie complained. 

“Webby told them not me,” Dewey defended, “Blame her not me.” You studied the paper Dewey handed you.

“What is this?” you asked. 

“We aren’t sure, but the date is from around the time we were born,” Huey explained. “We’re going to check the papers Scrooge had shredded that week to try and find something.” 

“We’re finally going to figure out what happened to mom…” Louie said. 

“Let me know if I can help you guys with anything,” you said. 

“We will,” Huey replied. 

“I-I have to get going. I’ll see you guys later,” you said. You left the room. 

Something about the boys learning about their mom made you wish you could find out about yours. You got mixed stories from your dad whenever you asked about her. He said she just up and left or she passed or even that he didn’t know who she was. You never had a hope to find her. You felt a little empty, but then you remembered Scrooge telling you that you’re part of the family now. You had a family. 

You got changed and grabbed your things to head out to work. You made your way out of the mansion and felt so sad. You didn’t want to leave. You didn’t want to go back to work or your apartment. The more you stayed at the mansion the harder it was to leave it. Really you didn’t have to. You said you’d be out of work that day, but you would use the paycheck. Besides you probably already had to work Sunday since you took Monday off. You really couldn’t wait to quit your job and move into the mansion. 

During the week you really debated the trip to Monacrow. You could surprise Scrooge by going on the trip and telling him you quit your job and can move in early, but you didn’t want to do that. You really wanted to ride it out and wait till your lease was up. That way you wouldn’t have to pay out anything or get sued for breaking your lease. 

Just as you guess, you had to work Sunday. That meant you couldn’t go to the mansion and see Scrooge. It was even worse knowing you wouldn’t see him the following weekend either. He’d be in Monacrow and you’d be in Duckburg. 

Scrooge stopped by to see you in the diner a few times before the Monacrow trip. Each time he offered again and again for you to go. Sadly, you had to decline each time. You told him you’d watch after the mansion while he was gone. 

The day before the Monacrow trip Webby called you. She told you the boys got the shredded papers from the week they were born and that they’d all be piecing them together on the plane. They were so close to figuring out what happened. You wished them luck because that’s all you could do. 

Sunday you got up early and took a bus to the mansion. You knew Scrooge and the others were long gone already, but you were still excited to be back at the mansion. You could help Donald with his boat and get to know more about Duckworth. 

When you got to the mansion Donald met you at the door. He welcomed you in and took you to the sitting room. You weren’t sure what was going on until Donald told you.

“I’m going to tell you the whole story of Della and the Spear of Selene…”


	14. Get Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter. It's honestly not as good as I wanted it to be, but oh well.

“Scrooge and Della had no intention of slowing down their adventures for the sake of the boys,” Donald started. “Scrooge built the Spear of Selene as a gift to Della. It was a spaceship. The boys were about to hatch, but she took the rocket anyways. There was a cosmic storm. Instead of telling Della to pull back, Scrooge talked her though it. Her transmission was lost. She was lost. Scrooge should have never built that stupid ship.” Donald’s sadness seemed to turn to anger.

“Scrooge shouldn’t have built the ship, but Della also shouldn’t have taken it,” you said. “I wasn’t there so I can’t really judge what happened, but it doesn’t sound like it was all Scrooge’s fault… I know it must have been so hard losing your sister though. Thank you for telling me what happened.”

There was an awkward silence for a moment.

“...so do you want to help me work on the boat?” Donald asked.

You helped Donald with his boat until it was near completion. He did most of the work of course. He knew what he was doing. You just did what Donald told you to. He got to the finishing paint touches so you just went inside with Duckworth. Suddenly the front door swung open. Mrs. Beakley was the first to walk in.

“You guys are back already?” You asked.

“Something happened.” Mrs. Beakley said. Webby ran inside and went directly upstairs.

“What happened?” You asked.

“There was an argument on the plane… I’m taking Webby out of the mansion for a while.” She said somberly. They boys walked in and went directly to the boat outside.

“Is everyone leaving? What happened?” You asked again. Mrs. Beakley opened her mouth to answer, but Scrooge walked in. The second he entered the doorway Mrs. Beakley went upstairs.

“You know it’s a good thing you haven’t quit your job yet,” Scrooge grumbled. “Both of you, get out.”

“What?” You whispered.

“I said get out!” Scrooge shouted. “Leave me alone.”

“Scrooge…” You took a step toward him but Duckworth put a hand on your shoulder to stop you. You looked at him and he shook his head telling you not to push things. Tears welled in your eyes as Duckworth walked you to your room.

“What the hell?” You asked while throwing things in your suitcase. “Two days ago he was begging me to move in and now he just tells me get out. No explanation. No conversation. Just ‘get out’ and ‘leave me alone.’” You tried zipping your suitcase but it wouldn’t close completely. Duckworth walked over and helped you. “Thank you Duckworth… I’m sorry this must be hard on you too. I mean you are literally dead and you still have to deal with him. Ugh, if he would just talk to me I could help him right now but no.”

You took your suitcase and Duckworth pulled his things from nowhere. You met up with Mrs. Beakley and Webby in the hallway. You talked to Webby while Duckworth and Mrs. Beakley talked.

“You okay?” You asked Webby.

“No…” She sighed.

“Me either,” you admitted. “But we’ll get there.”

“I’m not giving up on Scrooge though,” Webby stated.

“Me either,” you smiled. Mrs. Beakley too Webby’s hand and they continued down the hall. Duckworth walked with you behind them. Beakley and Webby stopped in front of Scrooge’s study. The door was open.

“Isn’t he even going to say goodbye?” Webby asked.

“We’re taking those vacation days. If that’s alright with you, sir,” Mrs. Beakley said to Scrooge.

“Fine,” Scrooge grumbled from inside the room. Webby continued walking.

“Well,” Mrs. Beakley started, “you successfully pushed your family and everyone who cared about you away. Again… I hope your happy.” She followed after Webby. Duckworth didn’t even look at Scrooge when he walked by the door. You did look at him, but he was facing away.

You paused for a moment after passing the doorway. You wanted to confront him. You wanted to know why he told you to get out. You wanted to know why he pushed everyone away. You wanted to talk to him, but you didn’t. You kept moving forward.

Donald’s boat was airlifted from the mansion to the marina so everyone took the bus there. It was only a few blocks from your apartment. Donald asked if you could watch the kids for a couple of hours while he talked to Mrs. Beakley. You agreed and took the kids near the shore. You all just sat in the sand depressed and a little angry.

“So can someone tell me what happened?” You asked.

“Scrooge gave our mom a rocket and encouraged her to keep going through a cosmic storm,” Dewey growled.

The kids actually found out about what happened. You wanted to say it wasn’t all Scrooge’s fault, but the boys needed someone to blame. At that point you didn’t care if they blamed Scrooge.

“He told me I wasn’t family…” Webby agonized. After Webby said that you _really_ didn’t care if the boys blamed Scrooge.

“He didn’t mean it Webby. He was just lashing out,” Huey comforted her.

“This sucks,” Louie said simply.

You sat there in silence for what felt like hours. You were all thinking about everything that just happened. You heard a few sniffles from the kids. After some time passed Donald came to bring the kids back to the boat.

“Are you going to be okay?” Donald asked you.

“I’ll be fine,” you lied.

“If you need anything, just come by the boat,” Donald told you. Then he left with the kids. You watched the sunset by yourself. You didn’t want to go back to your apartment. Going home meant it was really over. You laid back in the sand and watched the moon rise into the sky. You slept on the beach that night. It was still better than going home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn't as angsty as I wanted it to be tbh. I watched the new Ducktales episode and all the angst left my body. It was a good episode. Spoilers, but Team Uncle warmed my heart so much.


	15. The Shadow War (Part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was going to be all of the Shadow War but it's already kinda long. So the actual shadow war will be the next chapter.

You didn’t go home or even go to work the next day. You sat on the beach looking out at the horizon. You were broken. You didn’t realize how hard everything hit you. You thought you had finally found a place where you belong. You were wrong. 

Scrooge did this before. He pushed everyone away and shut himself out. Of course the boys would be angry about what happened to their mom. Scrooge should have known that. He could have handled things better. He didn’t have to tell Webby she wasn’t family. He didn’t have to tell you and Duckworth to leave. Had he just talked to you he would have known you didn’t think it was his fault. 

You didn’t want to leave the beach for some reason. Really you didn’t want to move at all. You didn’t want to go to work. You didn’t want to go home. You just wanted to sit in the sand and watch the waves. 

“You know, the first real adventure we went on with Scrooge was to Atlantis,” you heard Webby say. You didn’t even turn to look at her. “Now every time I look at the water I think about that day.”

“Must have been fun…” you said. Webby sat next to you.

“Have you been here since yesterday?” She asked. You just nodded. “Yikes. I thought you said you’ll be fine.”

“Eventually I will be,” you said. “I’m sorry Webby. I want to snap out of this. I really do, but I-” you paused. “I’ve never had this feeling. I’ve always been on my own. I’ve never gotten this close to anyone and to have it all ripped away so quickly it just hurts. Aren’t you hurt?”

“Of course I am,” Webby breathed. “But I know this family. I know Scrooge. We both said we aren’t ready to give up on him. So let’s not give up on him.”

“You know Webby,” You sighed. “You are one of the most incredible people I have ever met.” You stood up and dusted the sand off of you. “Wanna take a quick field trip to the mansion?”

You and Webby hopped on a bus and took it to the mansion. You both knew you wouldn’t get in. You just wanted to check on Scrooge. You didn’t tell anyone you were going. You knew Mrs. Beakley would probably kill you for taking Webby if she found out, so you both decided not to mention it. Webby said that Louie taught her how to lie and from what you knew about Louie, he was the best teacher in that department. 

You hopped off the bus near the mansion. If you didn’t have Webby with you, you would have hopped the gate. She knew would have done it. You just didn’t want someone to call the cops of you two. So you just used the intercom. 

“Scrooge, you in there?” You asked. There was no answer. 

“Unc- I mean, Mr. McDuck?” Webby tried. Still no answer. 

“Hey old man, if you don’t answer us I’m going to keep bugging you,” you said. “Scrooge… Scrooge.” You and Webby took turns saying his name in different annoying ways to get him to respond. Suddenly there was a dejected sigh on the other end.

“Just go away,” Scrooge groaned. 

“Well, at least we know he’s alive,” you said.

“I don’t really think he can die…” Webby whispered. She was probably right. 

“Hey Scrooge,” you said into the intercom, “I know you probably want to be alone right now and you don’t think you need family, but you do and I’m here for you Scrooge.”

“We’re here for you,” Webby smiled.

“Exactly, we’re here for you,” you corrected yourself. You stepped away from the intercom. “Alright, let’s head back before Mrs. Beakley notices we’re gone.” 

You hopped on another bus back to the marina with Webby. You wondered if you’d ever hear Scrooge talk to you again instead of just telling you to leave. You got back to the marina in no time and went back to the beach.

“So granny and I are staying in a hotel near by for right now if you want to join us.” Webby offered. 

“I have my own place to go to, but thanks,” you said.

“Then why did you sleep on the beach last night?” she asked. 

“I don’t want to go back to my apartment,” you sighed. “I should be at work right now actually. I don’t think I could handle being there right now. I’ll go back to my apartment tonight though. I’m pretty sure I left my suitcase on Donald’s boat, or at least I hope I did…”

“Are you sure you can go back to your place?” Webby asked. 

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. I’m doing better right now.” You said. “Let’s get you back to your granny and I’ll get my bag.” You did just that. After you got your bag you walked home. Walking into your apartment seemed to suck all the infectious Webby happiness from your body. You were back to being sad. You never felt so alone. It was suffocating. 

You debated going back to the mansion again. This time you’d be alone. You could hop the gate and bang on his door until he opened it, but you knew you should leave him alone. He needed time. 

You fell asleep a little earlier than you should and woke up late. You got a few calls from your boss, but you ignored them. You knew you were fired. You didn’t care. You went back to sleep.

The next day you woke up at a decent time. That was the day the last of the boys’ things would arrive at Donald’s boat from the mansion. He asked everyone if they could go over and help finish unpacking. You took a quick shower then headed out. 

The morning air felt amazing, but that could just be because you spent the entire previous day in your bed. You took your time getting to Donald’s house boat. There was no rush. When you got there some things were already unpacked. The boys carried a box to their room. You went to Donald to help him with a box he had. 

“How are they boys doing?” you asked. 

“They’re still not taking it well,” Donald said.

“What about you? How are you holding up?” you inquired. 

“I’m doing okay,” Donald admitted. The boys came back outside and Donald took some things inside. You walked around the boat and found Webby. She didn’t seem like herself. 

“Webby, are you doing okay?” You asked. 

“No…” she sighed. “I don’t see a way this can be fixed right now. Huey, Dewey, and Louie want nothing to do with Scrooge.”

“We just have to give it time…” you said. 

“We’re throwing that away!” You heard Dewey say before there was a loud crash. You and Webby ran over to see the boys with Launchpad. Webby went through the box Dewey dropped. 

“What? The Druid’s Cup? This Mount Neverrest T-shirt? The Golden Khopesh of Toth Ra that you conned Launchpad out of? Those artifacts are special.” Webby chimed in.

“It’s just old junk.” Dewey stated. He threw the trophy into the water. Huey joined him by setting the Mount Neverrest shirt in the water then using a flaming arrow to set it on fire. Louie faked throwing the golden khopesh into the water, but it didn’t fool anyone. Dewey grabbed it from him and threw it. Dewey and Huey had to physically hold Louie back from jumping in the water after it. 

These were things they got from Scrooge. You suddenly remembered the hundred dollar bill in your phone case. Had Webby not talked to you on the beach that one day, you probably would have tried to get rid of it like the boys were getting rid of their stuff. 

“I can’t believe it’s really over…” Webby sighed. “I mean they’re falling apart and they’re family. Are we next?”

“We’re not going to fall apart, Webby,” you reassured her. 

“Yeah, I mean I’ve crashed hundreds of Mr. McDee’s vehicles and he always gets over it,” Launchpad smiled. “The boys will too.” 

“I don’t know, this feels different,” Webby said. “They blame Scrooge for their mom’s disappearance.”

“It’ll blow over,” Launchpad stated. 

“Launchpad’s right. The boys will come around eventually.” You said. 

“They’ll be a happy family living in the mansion before you know it,” Launchpad beamed wrapping an arm around Webby. 

“Boys, good news!” Donald cheered as he stepped outside. “Where have we always wanted to go?” 

“Into the water to get my khopesh,” Louie answered.

“What? No. Cape Suzette.” Donald said. “We’re moving there tomorrow.” 

“They’re moving tomorrow?!” Launchpad and Webby said in sync. 

“Son of a fitch,” you mumbled. You took Webby and Launchpad to the dock to talk.

“We have no time! The only family I’ve ever known gone forever!” Webby exclaimed. “What do we do?”

“This is bad. Real bad,” Launchpad said. “Will Dewey and I still be friends?! Who will I call for advice?! Do they have phones in Cape Suzette?!”

“Everything is falling apart…” You shuddered. “Nothing is okay. This isn’t allowed to happen!”

“Okay, okay, one of us needs to stay calm here.” Webby said. 

“So… one of you two?” Launchpad pointed. 

“We need a plan. We have one chance to keep Donald and the boys here.” You stated. 

“We just need to remind Scrooge and the boys how much they need each other,” Webby said. 

Webby and Launchpad both gasped. “An amazingly fun and elaborate farewell dinner party scheme. Yes!” They said in unison. 

“Step one, we throw the boys a farewell party to convince them they don’t want to move,” Webby started. 

“Step two, reveal surprise quest, Scrooge, and remind them how much they all miss each other,” Launchpad continued. 

“Step three, there is no step three. We just nailed it in two steps!” Webby cheered. 

“You know, that could actually work,” you said. “If we actually get Scrooge out of his mansion. Every time some goes to check on him he just says to go away.” 

“Even if he doesn’t come we have to convince the boys to stay. As long as they’re here we can get everyone back together.” Webby said.

“You’re right. Let’s start working.” 

Webby wrote a note for the boys and Launchpad slid it under the door. When he got it back the box for “yay” was checked. Launchpad and Webby cheered. They chest bumped causing Launchpad to fall back but he stood quickly. 

“Now we just have to get Scrooge to show up.” Webby stated. “But how?”

“We just have to be subtle.” You said. 

Somehow you all agreed Launchpad should be the one to call and invite Scrooge. 

“Hello, Mr. McDee! Come to a party on Donald’s houseboat for um…” Launchpad looked to you and Webby for help. You both started charading what to say. “Umm… uh… A game of charades?” You grabbed the phone from Launchpad and put the call on speaker.

“Free food!” Webby said. 

“I’ll be there.” Scrooge answered. 

“You will?!” You all asked. 

“But I’ll only eat the finest lobster, caviar, canapés. And make sure no one starts eating until I get there, as I consider it the height of rudeness. Bless me bagpipes! Good day!” Scrooge hung up. 

“Well that was… easier than I thought…” Webby said. 

“He sounded kind of weird,” you expressed. 

“He probably just misses everyone and was trying to play it cool,” Launchpad said. 

“Yeah. You’re probably right…” you sighed. You started feeling light headed. 

“Are you okay?” Webby asked. 

“Yeah, just a little sick. I think it’s from the boat.” You said. “I’m going to sit out on the dock for a while.” 

“I’ll walk you out there,” Webby offered. She took your hand and led you outside and off the boat. You sat on the dock with your legs dangling over the water. 

“Thank you Webby,” you said. “Hey, if this doesn’t work, which it will, but if it doesn’t, I’ll still be here and so will Launchpad and your granny. We’ll still be a family. I promise.” Webby smiled and gave you a hug before running back inside. 

You watched the water and tried to keep yourself calm. You’re boat sickness faded into something much worse. A feeling of dread burned inside of you. You just blamed it on nerves. There were so many things that could happen. Things could be fixed, but they could also get much worse.


	16. The Shadow War (Part Two)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh sweet jesus I am so tired. I didn't want to sleep until the chapter was done. It's past one in the morning and here it finally is! Bless! It's a long one folks.

You lost track of time watching the waves ebb and flow. You heard footsteps come from behind you. You thought it was Scrooge so you stood quickly and turned. It wasn’t Scrooge. It was Mrs. Beakley. 

“What are you doing out here?” She asked. “Shouldn’t you be inside for the farewell party?”

“Oh, yeah. I guess I should get back in there.” You said. Your stomach turned. “Actually I’m going to wait a moment… you go ahead though. I’ll meet you in there.” Mrs. Beakley hesitated before going on the boat. A few moments later you saw Webby and Launchpad come out. They called you over to join them in a storage room.

“Granny is a master spy,” Webby started, “She’ll expose our plan! How did she know about the party?”

“I dunno,” Launchpad said. “I specifically wrote on her invitation ‘don’t come.’” You and Webby let out a sigh. 

“And where is Scrooge?” Webby asked. “He was supposed to be here an hour ago!”

“It’s okay,” you cut in. “We just need to stall until he gets here. We can totally do that.” You all went down to the party. The boys and Donald sat at the table. You stood with Webby, Launchpad, and Mrs. Beakley. 

“I’d like to make a toast!” Webby started. “The dictionary defines ‘family’ as ‘a group of people bound together by commitment and unwavering loyalty.’So let’s each say one nice thing about a particular relative of ours. Boys?”

Dewey begrudgingly started it off. “Ugh, fine. I’ll go with Uncle Donald, because… well he’s devoted to his family. Unlike others.” 

“Yeah and he’s thoughtful.” Huey added. 

“Don’t forget passionate,” Louie chimed in.

“I like his sailor get up.” Launchpad smiled. Donald looked like he could cry he was so happy. 

“Ugh, okay we all love Donald.” Webby groaned. “But how about a relative that is not in this room, who is over 80, and is very, very rich?”

“Why are you guys acting so weird?” Dewey asked. 

“We’re not!” Launchpad shouted. “Emergency bounce house!” He grabbed a compacted bounce house and pulled the string on it before anyone could stop him. It inflated. 

“Webby, Launchpad, (y/n). A word?” Mrs. Beakley growled. She pulled you all into the storage room and shut the door behind her. “This is a parent trap, isn’t it? You’re trying to manufacture sentiment to force Scrooge and the boys to come together against their will.” You, Webby, and Launchpad just looked back and forth at each other. You’d been caught. “I want in.” Mrs. Beakley said. 

“Really?” You said in unison with Webby and Launchpad. 

“If this family won’t come together, we’ll have to do it for them.” Beakley thought for a second. “I assume you invited Scrooge.”

“Yeah, but he’s… running late.” You didn’t want to say he wasn’t coming. You knew he wouldn’t just blow off the party. 

“Okay, I’ll get the boys and Donald emotionally primed while we wait.” Mrs. Beakley said. “I’m a former agent and a grandmother. I know how to weaponize guilt.” With that you all headed back to the party. Before going in you hesitated. “Are you okay?” Mrs. Beakley asked. “I know the answer is no, but you seem worse.”

“I just have a really bad feeling,” you explained. “It could just be sea sickness, but it’s different.”

“Care to elaborate on that?” 

“It’s a mix of things.” You said. “It mostly just feels like something terrible is about to happen. I don’t know how things can get worse, but it feels like they will.”

“There are plenty of ways this situation can get worse, you just haven’t been around long enough to see it,” Mrs. Beakley laughed. “Everything will be okay. Just take a deep breath and focus on how good things will be when everyone is back together.” 

“Alright, let’s get this family back together.” You said. You walked in with Mrs. Beakley. She made her way to the kitchen and you helped Launchpad finish shoving the bounce house into a closet. When you were done, Mrs. Beakley came back in the room and set down a plate with pie and ice cream.

“Apple shortbread pie with a scoop of sea salt ice cream,” Beakley said. “A common farewell dessert in certain parts.”

“Finally some real food,” Dewey grinned. 

“Oh, I’m so sorry…” Mrs. Beakley said taking the plate back. “This was Scrooge’s favorite dessert. Oh, I don’t want to remind you of that horrid old man who lost your mother all those years ago even if it was an accident that tore him up for ten years propelling him into a desperate search attempt that left him broken and nearly bankrupt.”

“Wait, bankrupt? Really?” Louie asked. 

“But I understand you’re upset because you lost one family member, which was terrible and painful, so you decided you should go ahead and lose another.” Mrs. Beakley continued. “Brilliant. Makes perfect rational sense.” You could see her words were working on Huey and Louie. 

“Yeah, nailed it Mrs. B.” Dewey said almost challenging Mrs. Beakley. 

“Yes, distance yourself even further from his life and forsake family altogether.” Beakley continued. She wasn’t backing down. You took a long sip from your drink. “That will definitely fix it.”

“No!” Launchpad exclaimed making you nearly choke on your drink. “It’ll do the opposite of that!” 

“Perhaps it’s worth considering that the reason Scrooge closed himself off was because the loss of Della was the hardest thing he’d ever faced, harder than any adventure.” Mrs. Beakley was hitting hard. She was making you feel guilty and you had nothing to feel guilty about. “It’s not that he didn’t care, it’s that he cared about family more than anything in the world. And Perhaps he still does. But I’m just the housekeeper. What do I know?”

“A lot! This lady knows a lot!” Launchpad chimed in. 

“Well then, let’s have a toast,” You said trying to keep things going. “Mrs. Beakley will you do the honors?”

“Alright. Let’s toast to a fine farewell meal, topped with a dash of perspective.” Beakley said raising her glass. 

“So this whole thing was to guilt us into going back to the mansion?” Dewey growled. “Well it’s not going to work! Sorry, but it’s too late. We’re going to Cape Suzette with our real family, and that’s that. Right Uncle Donald?” 

A moment of silence passed before Donald spoke up. 

“No, Mrs. B’s right.” He stated. “Uncle Scrooge needs us and we need him. Our family has been apart too long. It’s time for us to come together. Come here boys.” Donald kneeled down with open arms. Huey and Louie immediately ran to him. 

“Wait, wait, wait,” Dewey said. “But the spear. And mom. And… And…” Dewey sat for a moment by himself. He was angry, but Donald’s word must have reached him. Dewey’s demeanor changed and he ran to join his brothers and uncle in a hug. 

“Family?” Launchpad teared up. 

“Trapped!” Webby cheered. 

“Let’s go back to the mansion!” Dewey sobbed. 

Suddenly there was an explosion that shook the whole boat. You were the first to sprint outside. Just as you feared, it came from the mansion. A bright purple light beamed into the sky. 

“Ah phooey,” Donald said. 

The constant stream of purple light faded out snowing smoke coming off the mansion. Smaller beams of light shot through the city. A woman surrounded by and orb of purple light flew through the sky as the stolen shadows of the citizens below swirled around her. Suddenly the shadows of everyone on the boat jumped from their position and flew to join the others. 

“So… still going to Cape Suzette right?” Louie asked. “Cool, yeah, I’ll started the boat.” 

“Looks like your feeling was right.” Mrs. Beakley told you. “Things got worse.” 

You all looked on as the shadows crashed into Scrooge’s money bin. When the dust cleared the shadows swirled above the open bin. The money formed into a throne and the woman causing all of this sat upon it. 

“Magica DeSpell!” Mrs. Beakley gasped. 

“Wait who?” Dewey asked. 

“Magica DeSpell.” Webby repeated. “A vile sorceress with a mysterious, ancient grudge against Clan McDuck. She was Scrooge’s bitterest rival, but no one’s seen her since they fought on Mount Vesuvius fifteen years ago.”

“Alright all! Cool heads!” Mrs. Beakley commanded. “We must help Scrooge before anything else--” Suddenly something rose from the water and crawled onto the boat. Everyone screamed. 

“Take my brothers first please!” Louie said pushing Huey and Dewey forward. The creature removed all the seaweed stuck on it revealing a horse with a statue of Scrooge’s head as his head. 

“It’s just Manny!” Huey cheered.

“It’s just who now?” You asked. 

“It’s fine, Manny is a friend.” Huey explained. The horse pulled a man and a small robot out of the water. 

“That’s it!” the man yelled. “No more underwater labs! It’s volcanoes or abandoned castles from now on!” 

“Dr. Gearloose? What happened?” Huey asked. 

“Our own shadows came to life and wrecked the lab!” Gearloose responded. Huey bean to ask a question but Gearloose halted him. “My shadow control ray is still in the test phase, so this one is not on me.”

“Everybody listen up!” Donald commanded. After that you had no idea what he said. 

“What?” Everyone asked in unison. 

“Did anyone get any of that?” Launchpad asked. 

“It’s mostly context clues,” Huey admitted. 

“I get like every third word,” Louie added. 

“Nope completely unintelligible,” Dewey stated. 

“I’ll show you unintelligible!” Donald shouted then proceeded to chase Dewey around the boat. 

“We don’t have time for this.” Gearloose complained. He pulled a small pill like item from his pocket. “The Barksian Modulator! Able to translate neural impulses into sonic transmission.” 

“Huh?” Launchpad asked. 

“It’s a voice box,” Gearloose sighed. Dewey led Donald to Gearloose. Dr. Gearloose forced Donald to swallow the device. 

“Hands off of me you mad scientist!” Donald’s voice changed mid sentence. 

“Whoa, he sounds so normal.” Dewey said. 

“Rubber baby buggy bumpers…” Donald repeated a few times. “Wow I’ve never been able to say that before. As I was saying, Uncle Scrooge is in trouble, and it’s up to us to help him. Adventure is in our blood. We face down perilous foes and endless danger every day, but we always prevail. Because these ducks don’t back down!” 

“Thank you Donald,” Mrs. Beakley said. “Now we need to--” 

“Stage a coordinated attack!” Donald finished her thought. “Gyro, you and your team will charge the bridge to distract Magica’s shadow forces. Launchpad, head up the air attack to draw her attention. Do you think you can crash into the bin?” Everyone shared a laugh for a second. Of course Launchpad could crash into the bin. “Alright, alright. (Y/n) head out with Launchpad. If he flies in close enough you can jump and fight. And, Beakley while the others distract Magica, you and I will sneak around back in my newly fixed up house boat.”

“That is actually very close to what I was going to say.” Mrs. Beakley admitted. 

“And we…!” Dewey cheered. 

“Stay here.” Donald demanded. You didn’t hear the rest of the conversation. You were too busy running to the car so you could race to the plane. 

“Launchpad, I’m going to stand out on the wing so I can have a clear jump.” You explained. “Just please be careful.” You climbed onto the wing and held on for dear life as it took off. Your grip slipped a bit but you managed to hold on. You were determined to help. You weren’t going to let yourself die. 

Magica launched a mass of shadows toward the plane and Launchpad spun to avoid it. You had a death grip on the edge of the wing. It took all of your strength but you managed to stand on shaking legs. Launchpad flew directly at the bin, but was knocked aside by the shadows. You stumbled but managed to keep yourself up. He tried again, but the shadows knocked the plane away. This time you were knocked off your feet.

You slid to the edge of the wing and nearly fell off. You knew you would have to jump soon. Launchpad wouldn’t stop until he crashed the plane. You just needed him to get close enough for you to land without killing yourself. 

You managed to pull yourself up once again. Launchpad flew toward the bin again. You noticed the shadows flying toward the plane. You only had a split second to make a choice. Just before the shadows hit the plane you jumped. You fell into the shadows and tried to glide along them. You nearly fell out of the steam but you grabbed at them almost as if trying to monkey bar your way to a safe place to land. 

You aimed for the partial bride that ran from Scrooge’s office to the middle of the bin. With nothing but hope you swung yourself and released your grip on the shadows. You hit the concrete hard and got the wind knocked out of you for a moment. 

When you were finally able to gasp for air you got up. You planned to go after Magica but you noticed the kids in Scrooge’s office surrounded by shadows. You ran to help them then you noticed Donald come from nowhere.

“Get away from my kids.” Donald barked. You managed to get there in time to help fight two of the shadows. Donald turned to the kids with a growl.

“We can explain!” Louie said. 

“Please, I told you not to come, so of course you showed up. And just when I need you,” Donald smiled. 

“Classic reverse psychology. I feel like I should have seen that coming.” Louie said. 

More shadows entered the office. Donald moved the kids to the opening of the bin while you started fighting the shadows. 

“Go save your uncle,” Donald told the kids. “We’ll keep these palookas at bay. Ducks don’t back down.” Donald closed the bin door. “Come and get it you no good--” he started swinging at shadows with you. You were in so much pain from the fall, but you knew you had to keep fighting. 

“Are you sure you aren’t an adventurer?” Donald asked you with a laugh while you both fought.

“I am now,” you stated. Donald’s fighting was impressive. He moved incredibly fast and didn’t seem to tire out. Suddenly you were surrounded by the shadows. Then you saw the Gizmoduck suit roll up. It was being controlled by a shadow. 

You and Donald lasted as long as you could between fighting shadows and dodging attacks from the Gizmoduck suit. You were almost ready to give up. Then the door to the stairwell swung open. Mrs. Beakley came charging in with Manny and the duck that usually controlled the Gizmoduck suit. 

You all fought as hard as possible. Having the Gizmoduck duck there was a huge help because he used a blaster and Gearloose’s little robot to destroy the shadows with light. 

“You’re the guy inside Gizmoduck right?” You managed to ask him. 

“The name’s Fenton,” he replied. “You were at the Waddle thing right?”

“Only part of it. I’m (y/n), nice to actually meet you,” you said. You ducked and he shot behind you. “I just wanted to thank you for saving Huey that day.”

“No problem. Hopefully next time we can meet under better circumstances.” He laughed. You were both very much out of breath. The shadows began to dwindle. Soon enough there weren’t anymore attacking. You all paused to catch your breath. Everyone was disheveled and minorly injured. You all made your way to the bin just in time to see Magica’s staff fly in the air. 

Donald reacted fast and ran for it. He tried grabbing it but lost his balance and fell. He slid down a support and landed on a pile of gold. The staff fell and bounced on Donald’s head causing it to break. You ran and slid down the support with Manny, Fenton, and Mrs. Beakley. 

A bright purple light illuminated the room then swirled around Magica. Beams shot from her eyes and mouth into the shadow cyclone above. The shadows dispersed and there was an explosion. You didn’t pay much attention to all of that because you were running to Scrooge. Magica tried using her magic, but it didn’t work.

“My powers! They gone!” Magica wailed. You noticed the Sunchaser fall behind her. “You ruin everything!”

“Sorry to crash the party!” Launchpad yelled as he fell from the sky. He landed on Magica causing the surrounding gold to splash violently. You jumped at Scrooge to move both of you out of the way. When the gold settled you helped Scrooge up. 

“Huh, never crashed a me before,” Launchpad stated. Magica pushed him off of her and got to her feet.

“Curse you McDuck! You haven’t seen the last of me!” Magica yelled. She threw down a smoke bomb to create a magical disappearance, but the mystery was lost when she ran away coughing. Everyone cheered as she left.

“We did it!” Donald yelled. 

“Yes we did. Now about your boat…” Mrs. Beakley started. 

Webby held her friendship bracelet in her had with sad eyes. “Lena’s gone…” She said. You could hear the heart break in her voice. 

“But she sacrificed herself to save you.” Huey said. 

“Huh, I guess she really was my best friend.” Webby smiled softly. 

“She’ll always be with you,” Dewey comforted her. All three of the boys hugged Webby. When they moved along she tied her bracelet back on her wrist. You noticed something in Webby’s shadow, but you didn’t mention it to anyone. Lena really would always be with her. 

The boys and Webby walked to Scrooge. You stood back.

“Huey, Louie, the third one,” Scrooge started. “Curse me kilts have I missed you.” The kids practically launched themselves at Scrooge to hug him. 

“Family truly is the greatest--” Donald started coughing and hacking mid sentence. He coughed up the Barksian Modulator. 

“Eww,” everyone said in unison. Scrooge just kind of covered the device with gold using his cane. 

“Anyone up for a midnight swim?” Scrooge asked. Everyone rushed at the gold and jumped like it was water. Scrooge and Louie swam through it with ease. Everyone else tried. You sat on the edge of the indention with Manny, Fenton, and Mrs. Beakley. 

“Aw, bleh! Don’t drink this water!” Launchpad warned. 

After “swimming” for a while it was time to go. Roxanne Featherly stopped everyone for a moment to report on the story before anyone else could. You and Donald helped Manny and Fenton get out of there so they didn’t attract too much attention. 

It was hard to believe such a long day was finally over. You just wanted to go back to the mansion and sleep. Everyone began to walk home. Donald and Mrs. Beakley were nice enough to take the kids ahead so you and Scrooge could take your time getting to the mansion. You had a lot to talk about. 

“First I just want to say I’m sorry,” Scrooge said. “I shouldn’t have kicked you out like that. You had nothing to do with anything that happened.”

“Just don’t do it again,” you laughed. “I missed you, Scrooge.”

“I missed you too.” He admitted. “I’m sure you probably know everything that happened by now.” 

“You mean the whole Della thing?” You asked. Scrooge nodded. “Yeah, it must have been hard to get through. It wasn’t really your fault… but let’s not get into that right now. I just spent the entire day talking about all of this. I’m ready to go home and just sleep.”

“Home? Do you plan to go to your apartment?” Scrooge asked. 

“Absolutely not,” you stated. “I decided to end the wait early. I’m moving in. Really I have no choice. I haven’t gone to work in three days without any notice so I’m definitely fired. Now if you kick me out again you’ll feel extra bad because I’ll be homeless.” You joked.

“I won’t kick you out ever again,” Scrooge said. “I promise.” 

“I almost died like four different times today,” you yawned. 

“That’ll happen a lot around this family,” Scrooge stated factually.

“It’s totally worth it,” you said. You and Scrooge reached the mansion after everyone had already gotten settled in. He walked you to your room and made sure it wasn’t one of the areas that Magica blew up. Lucky for you it wasn’t. Before even opening your door you wrapped Scrooge in a tight hug. “I don’t want to let go,” you laughed. 

You released the hug, but stayed close to Scrooge. You looked into his eyes for a moment before you both leaned in and closed your eyes. Your bills met for a soft kiss. You separated a few moments later.

“Good night, Scrooge,” you whispered. You couldn’t stop smiling. 

“Good night, (y/n).” Scrooge replied. You went into your room and laid on the soft, comfortable bed. You were so tired you could have fallen asleep is seconds, but after that kiss sleep wasn’t on your mind. 

The day was a wild ride, but it ended in the best way possible. You were so grateful for the family you became part of. You were so happy to have Scrooge back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel like it's weird I have to use duck terms sometimes. Like the kiss? I'm used to writing kissing scenes but it felt so weird to have to work with the duck bills??? But also first kiss!!


	17. A Gift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a shorter chapter that should have been longer to be honest. I've been super distracted lately. The last few days have been a lot of work and very little sleep. The next three weeks or so are going to be a lot of work for me between college and internship and work. I will try to update as much as possible.  
> (Edit) for some reason I didn't post the last three paragraphs of this? So I added them now.

The next day you were sore beyond belief. You willed yourself out of bed and walked outside to the pool. It was strange not seeing Donald’s boat there. He just finished fixing it and now it was underwater. 

You looked up at the part of the mansion that was blown up by Magica. You knew in a matter of days it would be fixed just like in a matter of days your bruises would be gone. It was so strange how time moved on. You walked back into the mansion and out the front door. You went back to the bin. 

There was security about the place and construction had already started on it. You took out your phone and took pictures just as you did when the money shark destroyed the place. You zoomed in and noticed Scrooge on the bridge. You put your phone away and practically ran to Scrooge. 

“Good morning,” you sang. “How did you sleep?”

“Surprisingly well,” Scrooge smiled. 

“Just to think we stood here a few months ago when a money shark destroyed you bin,” you sighed. “Back then we were just strangers. I never would have thought this is where we’d be.”

“You know Magica was responsible for that money shark too,” Scrooge said. “If it wasn’t for her we may still be strangers. If it wasn’t for her the boys may have left forever and I wouldn’t have my family back.”

“I don’t think so,” you chimed in. “Mrs. Beakley already guilted them into going back just before Magica blew up the mansion. Who needs an evil sorceress when you have a housekeeper? Although I have to admit it was a fun fight. Painful and terrifying, but fun. I’d do it all again for you.” 

“You may have to depending on what adventures we go on,” Scrooge joked. “I’d do the same for you. I still cannae believe you stood on the wing of the Sunchaser with Launchpad flying it.”

“Neither can I,” you admitted. “But I trusted him. He hasn’t killed me yet…”

“I say we take today to recover and tomorrow we follow this treasure map,” Scrooge pulled a map from his coat. “I was saving it for when you finally decided to join us as an adventurer. Now that day is here!”

“I should probably move my things to the mansion,” you realized. “I should probably go by the diner too… I’m so excited to leave all of that behind.”

“Oh, I just remembered something,” Scrooge said. He took your hand. “Come with me to the mansion.” Of course you followed him. 

You realized you would follow Scrooge McDuck to the ends of the Earth. You trusted him with your life. You adored him. The fight with Magica truly made you realize that. You wouldn’t jump from a plane to the certain doom of fighting shadow creatures below for just anyone. You loved being around him. You loved him. 

Scrooge led you all the way to his study.He shuffled through his desk for a moment then told you to close your eyes. You did as he instructed. When he said to open them you did. Scrooge held out a box with a ribbon for you to take. 

“What’s this?” You asked.

“Open it,” he said. You slid the ribbon off and opened the box. Inside was a camera. “You’ll be needing this if you want to document the adventures. I was going to give it to you with the treasure map.” 

“Thank you so much,” you said. You wrapped your arms around Scrooge. “I know exactly what the first picture will be.” You turned on the camera and pointed the lense at you and Scrooge with your arm fully extended. You snapped a picture then immediately turned the camera around to look at it. The picture looked great. You noticed Scrooge wasn’t looking at the camera. He was looking at you with a soft smile. When you looked up from the camera he was still giving you that same smile. 

There was a light knock on the door then Webby came in. “Mr. McDuck? Granny needs you to sign off on some paperwork for construction.”

“I’ll be right back,” he told you. “Webbigail, I’m sorry I said you weren’t family. You are. Very much so. You can still call me Uncle Scrooge.” Webby practically launched herself at Scrooge to hug him. When she finally let go he left the room. Webby looked at you for a second and noticed the camera.

“Scrooge gave you the camera?!” Webby yelled. “Does that mean you’re moving in?”

“Yeah, I decided last night,” you smiled. “Tomorrow we set off on some sort of treasure hunt which means today I need to move all my stuff in. Well, the stuff I want to keep anyways.” 

Webby seemed to be back to her happy self despite what happened yesterday. You wanted to ask what happened, but you figured you should ask one of the boys. It must have been hard for Webby to lose Lena and you didn’t really want to bring it up around her just yet. You saw something in Webby’s shadow when she put on the friendship bracelet, but you didn’t want to mention that either. It could have just been a trick your eyes played on you. 

When Scrooge got back you went with him to move things from your apartment. You didn’t really need your bed or appliances. You had a bed in the mansion along with just about everything else you needed. You never unpacked the suitcase you brought back from the mansion so you just took that and packed another suitcase. You didn’t realize you had so little to take with you.

You stopped off at the diner on your way to the mansion. To your surprise, you weren’t fired. To their surprise, you quit. You said goodbye to the cook and one of the waitresses. You thought you would be kind of sad but it was actually freeing. You never thought you’d be able to quit that job.

You unpacked your things with the noise of construction in the background. It felt nice to put your clothes in the closet instead of just leaving them in the suitcase. You lived there now. 

That evening you and Scrooge went over the treasure map he had. You would have to fly to one of the islands of Indonesia. It wouldn’t be an easy trip, but if it were it wouldn’t be an adventure. Of course you would have Launchpad and the kids accompany you two. You were excited. You were ready.


	18. The Relic of Krakatoa

You found yourself crossing a beam above a pit of iridescent spikes. You barely had enough room to place one foot in front of the other. It wasn’t too hard of a task, but the spikes were unnerving. If you lost your balance in the slightest you could fall to a painful end. 

You watched Scrooge do it first. He was graceful like he’d done it hundreds of times before. He probably had done that sort of thing hundreds of times. The kids followed him. Huey practically followed Scrooge’s exact footsteps. Dewey and Webby seemed to run across the beam. Louie took it slowly. You followed Louie’s lead. 

To your surprise Launchpad had actually stayed in the plane for this one. Scrooge said it was just in case you all needed to make a hasty getaway. A part of you wanted to stay in the plane too, but that would ruin all the fun. 

You were only a few feet away from safety when you felt yourself stumble. You nearly fell. The second you regained your balance, you launched yourself forward and landed on stable ground. You continued as a group until you reached a fork.

“Which way do we go?” You asked. Huey and Scrooge studied the map for a second. 

“Try right,” Huey suggested. You took one step forward and the walls on either side slammed shut right in front of you. Any closer and you would have been crushed. 

“I’ll take my chances with going left,” Louie stated. You all went down the left pathway. It led you to a staircase that ascended into darkness. Scrooge led the way with a torch. The stairs seemed to go on forever until you looked back and realized you hadn’t moved at all. You were on an escalator.

You warned the others to hop off for a moment. They all did and you jammed a stick down and the bottom step was almost in the ground. It halted the steps but no one knew how long it would last. You all ran up the steps and made it to the top just as the stick below snapped causing the machine to continue. 

There was a short hallway that led into a huge room. In the center of the room sunlight shined through a hole in the roof. A black and gold statue glistened in the light at the top of four large steps.

“There it is, the relic of Krakatoa,” Scrooge stated. “An idol made of solid gold and obsidian.” You all approached the item. Scrooge crawled up the steps and took the idol. “This was created to sooth the forces of the volcano but once it was finished the volcano erupted killing everyone in the vicinity. The statue miraculously survived and to this day it is a mystery how it got here.” 

When Scrooge finished talking the room shook. Soon there was lava flowing from the walls and onto the floor. You hurried the kids up to where Scrooge was and followed right behind. The lava wasn’t slow. It was filling the room fast. You looked up at the hole in the roof and made a quick decision. 

“Webby, do you have your grappling hook?” You asked. 

“Of course,” Webby laughed.You both looked at each other as if reading each other’s mind. You cupped your hands so Webby could get a foothold. Just before she pushed off from your hands you lifted your arms so she would have the momentum to get all the way to the hole. She held on at the opening and shot the grappling hook at something it could wrap around to hold. She dropped back down with the gun so it would extend all the way. 

Once Webby was down she started climbing back up. Right behind her were Huey, Dewey, and Louie. Scrooge insisted you go ahead of him and he followed close behind with the statue in one hand. You got to the top then helped Scrooge up. You quickly pulled the rope to get the grappling hook gun before the lava got it. 

You gave the gun back to Webby and she retracted it as quickly and it would go. The hole led you to a grassy patch on a hillside. You all made a mad dash to the edge and slid down a muddy slope. It was fun. Almost like skiing but without snow and skis. 

You glanced behind you and noticed lava oozing from the grassy patch you just came from. When you finally made contact with even ground below you all sprinted to the plane. Launchpad showed no hesitation taking off. Once in the sky you could see the lava flow slowing. The adventure was a success. 

The plane ride home was lengthy. You and Scrooge sat near each other and that was enough to induce taunting from the boys. “Ooh Scrooge is in love,” the boys sang mockingly. You couldn’t help but laugh quietly. The boys eventually tired of teasing and moved along to see Webby and Launchpad. 

“So Scrooge, are you in love?” You asked jokingly. 

“Something like that,” Scrooge admitted. You felt yourself blush. Scrooge set his hand on yours.

“Yeah, me too,” you smiled. You didn’t have a defined relationship with Scrooge, but it was clear that it was something romantic. 

It was late when you finally got back to the mansion. The kids all went off to bed while you and Scrooge went to his study to take a closer look at the idol that was obtained. It was a beautiful piece. The cracks of gold stood out against the black of the obsidian. It was heavy because it was solid. 

You started talking about the statue but eventually the conversation shifted. You sat with Scrooge and talked all night just as you had done that one time in the diner. Scrooge was just as charming as ever. It was hard to believe you weren’t even talking to each other just a few days prior. You never wanted that to happen again. You wanted to stay around Scrooge for as long as you could.


	19. Thor's Well

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love this chapter a lot tbh. I hope you guys enjoy it <3

The next few days you went on adventure after adventure. Sometimes Donald joined you. Most of the time Launchpad was there. Every time it was you, the kids, and Scrooge. Seeing Scrooge in action always made your heart flutter. Sometimes you saved him and sometimes he saved you. It always made your bond with each other stronger. 

You got back late again one night. Instead of going into the mansion you took Scrooge out of the wing of the Sunchaser. It was the same wing you had leapt from nearly a week prior. It was a quiet night and the sky was clear enough to see stars. 

Scrooge sat against the plane and you joined him. He wrapped an arm around you pulling you close. You leaned against him.

“I’m really glad you’ve joined us,” Scrooge admitted.

“Me too,” you said. “It’s been so much fun and I’ve got a ton of great pictures. This is all just amazing.” 

You sat in comfortable silence for a moment. You didn’t want to move from where you were. You just felt safe and warm. 

“Scrooge,” you whispered after some time. “I love you.” There was no response. You moved to look at Scrooge and he was asleep. You moved back to where you were and snuggled closer to him. It wasn’t long before you fell asleep too. 

You woke up when the sun began to rise. Scrooge was already awake. You both just sat there watching the sun come up. If you could begin every morning like that you would. 

“Scrooge,” you said hoarsely. “I-” Suddenly you were interrupted by the kids and Launchpad cheering for another day of adventure. You forgot you were going out again. You and Scrooge hopped off the wing and joined the rest in boarding. 

“What were you going to say back on the wing?” Scrooge asked once you were settled in the plane. 

“Oh, it was nothing,” you lied. It wasn’t the right time. 

The plane ride wasn’t very long at all this time. You just flew across the country. When you landed you were on a beach. You felt the spray of the ocean as you stepped outside. Just ahead of the shoreline was a hole that water just fell into.

“Thor’s Well?” Huey asked. “Is that our adventure? Because it’s only like twenty feet deep.”

“That’s what they want you to think,” Scrooge said. “Suit up everyone. We’re going to see what’s at the bottom of Thor’s Well.” 

There were scuba suits and equipment inside the plane. You all suited up and got in the water. It might have been easier to use a boat, but you all just swam out to the sinkhole. Once at the edge you stood on the rocks trying not to let the water push you around. You peered into the depths of Thor’s Well. You couldn’t see the bottom. After everyone made sure their gear was secure, you jumped in. 

It wasn’t hard to swim to the bottom. Just as Huey said, it was only about twenty feet. Scrooge felt along the edges looking for a switch or something. Sure enough he found what he was looking for. The floor began to open up causing a whirlpool effect. You desperately tried swimming up, but you all got sucked down. 

It was about another twenty foot drop underneath the false bottom. The water pushed you in but it also helped ease the fall. Once you were all in the false bottom closed and sealed itself. The water began to drain where you were. You took the respirator from your mouth and took a breath without it.

There was a metal door against the wall. Curiously, you moved a loose panel and found a button. You pressed it and the door slid open. 

“This has a major evil villain secret lair feeling,” you joked. 

“Thor’s Well suddenly doesn’t seem like a natural sinkhole now,” Huey said. 

The door led to a long hallway lined with trees. You went first. There were motion activated lights that turned on as you walked. At the end of the hallway there was a spiral staircase. You hesitated but climbed the steps. At the top there was a large room with nothing but a garage door. 

“This place just keeps getting weirder and weirder,” Scrooge stated. 

“I found a switch!” Launchpad announced. He pressed it immediately. The garage door slowly opened. On the other side was the beach with the Sunchaser sitting on it. All of you had the same look of confused disappointment on your face. 

“What was even the point of that?” Louie asked. 

“I don’t think there was one,” Dewey said. 

You took your camera from the plane and decided to take pictures of the passage way while trying to figure out if there was any reason or importance to it. Launchpad took the kids to play in the sand and water. Scrooge wanted to go with you. 

You both entered through the garage door opening and backtracked making sure to document the entire way. You searched the staircase for some sort of insignia but found none. Even the hall of trees was nothing more than a hall of trees. It was just strange. The airlock room had no significant markings other than some signs of water dripping. It was just strange. 

“Maybe it was going to be used as some sort of observation room,” you suggested. “Put in a glass ceiling and it would be perfect.”

“There’s an idea. Mind if I use it?” Scrooge asked. He was serious. 

“Might want to figure out who did all this first. You don’t want to steal someone’s project.” You said. 

“I’ll look into it,” Scrooge said. “We should go back.”

“Wait,” you stopped him. “I’ve been wanting to say something. It’s nothing big I guess, but I think I should say it now. I love you.” You said it quickly almost anticipating that something would stop you. 

Scrooge paused for a moment as if speechless. He looked shocked but his expression soon turned soft. He strode over to you and placed a hand at the small of your back and held you close to him. “I love you too,” he whispered in your ear. Then he kissed you. The previous kiss was soft and gentle, but this one was more. It was passionate and lasted for a few moments. Then you felt water drops on the top of your head. 

You and Scrooge separated just in time to brace yourselves for the water pouring from the top of the room. You had to hold your breath. When the water finally halted and drained you saw the kids and Launchpad in their scuba gear. 

“One more time!” Huey, Dewey, and Louie said in unison. You laughed then looked at your camera and panicked. It got wet. You scrambled to check it out hoping that if anything was damaged the memory card was spared. 

“I spared no expense. It’s waterproof,” Scrooge told you. “All of your pictures should be safe.” 

“Oh thank goodness,” you sighed in relief. 

The kids ran off with Launchpad to jump into Thor’s Well one last time before leaving. You and Scrooge took your time getting back to the plane. You enjoyed the moment in the air lock room and it was a little disappointing that it was cut short, but it’ll always be that much more memorable. 

“I love you,” you sand just because you wanted to say it again. 

“I love hearing those words come from you,” Scrooge stated. “I love you too.” 

You waited outside the plane for everyone to get back. Thor’s Well was a less than glamorous adventure, but from that moment on it would always be your favorite. That underwater room would always be the first place you told the man you loved that you love him.


	20. Kidnapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you guys watch the new episode? It was beautiful. I love Fethry. Also I really need them to show me what Launchpad was up to.

You all continued on adventure after adventure after adventure. It was a little tiring, but still fun. Webby had something to keep her from thinking about Lena and the boys were able to have fun with their uncle again. You were grateful for that. 

Eventually, you needed a day to break. You weren’t used to constant peril and danger. You decided to stay back one day. Scrooge took the kids adventuring by himself. Before he left he kissed you and told you he loved you. No matter how many times you heard him say it those words always seemed to take your breath away. 

By then it was almost no secret that you and him were an item. Mrs. Beakley and Duckworth seemed to know the second you returned from Thor’s Well that something big happened between you two. Webby and the boys obviously found out since most of your time with Scrooge had been on adventures with them. Even Launchpad knew. The only person you weren’t sure knew or not was Donald.

Obviously Donald knew something was going on, but he didn’t know you and Scrooge were officially something. You thought it best to let someone else tell him. It would just be an awkward conversation. 

Scrooge left with the kids and you went for a walk. It had been a while since you actually looked around the mansion. You hadn’t noticed the portraits of Della out and about. It felt good to see them. What happened to her was no longer some dark secret. Everyone accepted what happened and the family was stronger for it. 

You wondered if Della was still out there and if you’d ever get to meet her. It seemed impossible, but stranger things have happened in Duckburg. 

You passed by a window overlooking the pool. Donald was working on his boat. You realized how long it had actually been since the fight with Magica. A full month had passed. With all the expeditions and such you just didn’t notice time passing.

You wandered aimlessly about the mansion and ultimately found yourself bored. You could have tried to find Mrs. Beakley or Duckworth and offer to help them, but you just couldn’t happen to run into either of them. You were regretting staying behind. You decided to leave the mansion and go have fun on your own for a while. 

It was a cool, gloomy kind of day. It was the perfect weather to just go for a walk around the city. You took your camera with you and headed downtown. Duckburg was a bustling that day. Everybody seemed to be out and about. You even noticed Gizmoduck fly overhead a few times. You got some cool shots of him.

You passed a hardware just as Dr. Gearloose came out. He was carrying more bags than he could really hold. You stopped him and offered to help him. He handed you a few bags and continued on. He walked quickly making it difficult to keep up with him. He turned onto the bridge to Scrooge’s money bin and you paused.

“I thought your underwater lab was destroyed,” you said readjusting one of the bags in your hands. 

“It was,” Gearloose said. “Scrooge is letting me use another floor to work in until a new lab is built.” 

You hurried to catch up with Dr. Gearloose and you both made your way into the bin. You took the elevator and only went up a couple of floors before it stopped. Dr. Gearloose had to scan a keycard for the elevator to open. 

“Thank you for your help. Just set the bags down and leave,” Gearloose instructed. You set the bags on a table and said hi to Manny before heading back to the elevator. You were only a few steps away from the bin when you were grabbed. Before you could call out for help another hand held a rag over your mouth. You were unconscious in a matter of seconds. 

Your head ached as you woke up. You were sitting upright in a rather uncomfortable chair with a single light on above you. Your torso was tied to the back of the chair and your ankles were bound to the legs of the chair. You wiggled a little bit to test how tight the ropes were. If you tried hard enough you could get your arms free from the rope around your upper body. 

You attempted to free one arm at a time but a door swing open. The rest of the lights in the room came on. You blinked trying to get used to the new lighting. A stout duck in a kilt walked up to you. 

“Scroogie got himself quite a bonnie,” the duck said in a Scottish accent.

“Are you some sort of bad Scrooge impersonator?” You asked. You knew exactly who he was. You just wanted to infuriate him.

“No! I am Flintheart Glomgold! The original wealthy Scot of Duckburg!” Glomgold yelled. 

“Oh, the second richest duck in Duckburg,” you said unamused. “Why would you kidnap one of Scrooge’s employees? I’m not even that valuable. I’m a photographer. Speaking of which were is my camera?” It wasn’t public knowledge that you and Scrooge were together. It wasn’t exactly a secret. It just wasn’t known. Everyone knew you were an employee because of Roxanne Featherly, but that was it. 

“I know you’re more than just his photographer,” Glomgold smiled. “I know you’re his significant other.” 

“Scrooge is right you are crazy,” you laughed. A little light began to flash on a camcorder just a few feet from you. Glomgold gave a laugh before hitting a button on the camcorder. The screen behind it came on showing Scrooge in his study. In a smaller square on the screen showed what the camcorder was picking up.

“What’s all this about Glomgold?” Scrooge asked. You wondered how long you were unconscious considering Scrooge was already home. 

“I have something I think you might want,” Glomgold grinned. He moved the video camera to show you. 

“Hi, Mr. McDuck,” you said pretending to be nothing more than an employee. Scrooge told you to pretend you were nothing more than an employee in a situation like this. It’s not that he didn’t want people to know you were together. He just knew that if they knew you were anything more it would put you in more danger. 

“You got my photographer… Why?” Scrooge asked. 

“Stop messing around!” Glomgold demanded. Placing the video camera to focus on him “I know they’re not just your photographer!” 

While Scrooge and Glomgold argued you were able to slip your arms out of the ropes and untie yourself. You quietly made your way toward the door. Glomgold was too busy yelling at Scrooge to even notice you making your way behind him. You made sure Scrooge could see you and you winked at him. Then you practically sprinted to the door, but not before grabbing your camera off a table between two lavish chairs. Why couldn’t he tie you up in one of those?

You made your way out of the building and saw that the sun was already down. You checked your phone for the time. It was past ten. You were thankful that you still had time to catch a bus. You had over a dozen missed calls. Most were from Scrooge, but now he knew where you were.

When you got to the mansion Scrooge was still video chatting with Glomgold. It must have been one long conversation if Glomgold hadn’t noticed you were gone. When Scrooge noticed you come in he gave a big smile and waved you over. 

“Oh, Glomold, I think you’ve misplaced something,” Scrooge said just before you popped into frame. 

“You might want to work on tying knots,” you advised. Glomgold was beyond shocked. He looked back at your chair and couldn’t even speak. 

“Well, it’s been a lovely time, but I have more pressing matters,” Scrooge stated. “Goodbye.” With that he disconnected. “I hate pretending you’re nothing more than an employee.” Scrooge admitted. “But it really is to protect you.”

“I totally understand,” you said. “I’m happy to be home.” You wrapped your arms around Scrooge and pulled him into a kiss. You were both so caught up in the moment neither of you heard the door open.

“Oh…” You heard Donald say. You and Scrooge separated quickly. “Well… this is awkward.” Donald mumbled.


	21. The Duckburg Gala

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh long chapter. I didn't realize it was on the longer side because it feels like it's rushed to me. It's a good chapter though. I don't want to spoil it so I'll talk in the notes at the bottom.

“I knew this would happen, but it’s still weird,” Donald said. If you were in his position, you’d see it as weird too. The age gap was a bit extreme, but that would be the case for just about anyone Scrooge dated. 

“If you’re uncomfortable with this-”

“No, no,” Donald cut you off. “If Uncle Scrooge is dating anyone, I’m glad it can be someone like you.” You could have cried with how happy that sentence made you. 

“Thank you Donald,” you said. “Anyways, you probably came in here to talk to your uncle, so I’ll just see myself out.” You left the room so they could talk. You took a stroll back to your room and ran into Webby in the hallway. “Hey, how was the adventure today?” You asked her. 

“It was fun!” She cheered. “I got to fight a mermaid.” 

“That sounds very interesting actually,” you smiled. “I wish I would have gone. I got kidnapped today.”

“Was it the Beagle Boys?” Webby asked.

“Actually no. It was Glomgold.” You said. “I was surprised. I really thought the first time I was kidnapped it would be by the Beagle Boys or someone else trying to ransom me off. I think Glomgold was just trying to bother Scrooge a little. Somehow he knew about me and Scrooge.”

“About how you two are in love?” Webby teased.

“Yes,” you blushed. “I don’t know how he knew though. No one outside of family knows. If they did Roxanne Featherly would have spread it already.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it. Glomgold thought Scrooge was dating Launchpad when he first started working here.” Webby told you.

“Really?” You laughed. “That’s interesting.”

“Do you think you’ll ever tell the public?” Webby asked. 

“Maybe, I dunno,” you said. It was safer to just keep the image of an employee, but you really wanted to tell the world that you loved Scrooge McDuck. “You should get to bed. We’ll probably be off again sometime soon.”

“You’re right,” Webby said with a yawn. “Goodnight.”

“Sleep well, Webby,” you said. You watched her walk down the hall before continuing on your way. You went to your room but didn’t sleep. You weren’t tired after being knocked out for a few hours. You wondered why you were out so long. What was on that rag? Chloroform wouldn’t have been so effective. After dwelling on it for a moment you realized it didn’t matter. 

You grew restless in your room and eventually went for a walk around the mansion. You found yourself just feet from Scrooge’s study when he stepped out. He was smiled gently at you.

“Care for a walk?” He asked you. You took his arm and started down the hallway. 

“So, Webby said she fought a mermaid today,” you mentioned. “I guess I should have been there.”

“It was a fun one today, but the mermaids will always be there if you’re looking for a brawl,” Scrooge joked. “So, the Duckburg Gala is coming up soon. Would you like to attend?”

“If this your way of asking me on a date?” You questioned. “Because of course my answer is yes. Wasn’t there just a gala a few months ago? Like right after the money bin shark.”

“Oh yeah that one…” Scrooge said nervously. “That was Glomgold’s Gala. It was less than eventful.” 

“Less than eventful huh? Well, I’m sure this one will be more fun,” you smiled. Scrooge led you down a few different halls until you reached his room.

“Would you like to come in?” Scrooge offered. Scrooge’s bedroom was one of the few rooms in the mansion you hadn’t really been in. You didn’t want to leave his side just yet so you went in. You both sat on the edge of his bed. 

“So what’s on the agenda for tomorrow?” you asked. 

“I’m not sure yet,” Scrooge said. “There’s a few ideas I have. We have an entire world to explore.”

The night carried on with you and Scrooge talking. When morning rolled around you found yourself waking up next to Scrooge. You moved closer to him and just stayed there. You loved being close to him. When he woke up you were the first thing he saw. You wished you could just stay there, but you had places to go. 

The next two weeks soon became a blur of plane rides and mysterious locations. You hardly ever went back to the mansion. When you did go home it was only to drop off treasure at the bin or to pick up any supplies. You wondered if things would ever calm down. 

One night on the plane you noticed a light moving about. Almost everyone was asleep so you went to check on it. Huey was looking over a map and trying to situate a flashlight so he had enough light. 

“Need some help with that?” You asked. Huey gave you the flashlight and you held it up for him. “What are you working on?”

“I’m mapping out where we’ve found different things,” he answered. “This is the only time I can do it because I’m not sure when we’ll get another break.”

“Well we should have a break this weekend. Scrooge and I are going to the Duckburg Gala,” you explained. 

“Another gala? Do we have to go this time?” Huey asked almost whining. 

“I guess it was boring last time?” you laughed. Huey wasn’t usually the one to whine. 

“It was for Glomgold’s exhibit at the museum, but all the artifacts were just from times he lost to Uncle Scrooge.” Huey explained. “Dewey had a good time and Scrooge got to see an old girlfriend, but it just wasn’t fun.”

“Wait, Scrooge saw an old girlfriend? She must have been just as ancient as he is,” you laughed. 

“Actually yeah. From what Scrooge told us they were both alive during the gold rush.” Huey explained. “After the gala they went on an adventure together to finish some old business. Dewey thought they would get back together, but then you came along. We haven’t even heard about her since.”

A little bit of jealousy began to bubble inside you. You knew you had no reason to be jealous. Scrooge was with you and you trusted him completely. You doubted his ex would be a problem. Just in case she did pose as an issue, you wanted someone to keep you level headed.

“So would you be opposed to going to this Gala?” You asked Huey. “Obviously your brothers and Webby would come along too.”

“Well, with Webby there it might be a little more interesting, but don’t you want to just be alone with Scrooge?” Huey asked.

“Of course, but it’s better if the public doesn’t realize we’re together. If I went alone with him it would set off a few flags,” you explained. While it was true, it wasn’t the real reason you wanted the kids to go along with you. 

“You have a point,” Huey said. “I’m sure we can tag along.”

“Thanks. I owe you and Louie for this. I’m sure Dewey and Webby will actually enjoy this,” you noted. You continued holding Huey’s flashlight until he was done with his map. 

The next day you advised Scrooge to bring the kids along for the same reason you told Huey. He reluctantly agreed saying you made a good point. You doubted his ex would be back. You just didn’t want to chance anything. 

When the night of the gala came you found yourself nervous. In the limo you were silent. Scrooge asked multiple times if you were okay. You were fine. You just didn’t know what was going to happen. You’d never been to a society event. Your legs didn’t want to take you out of the limo, but you forced them to work. You told yourself it would be a great night. With Scrooge and the kids there was no way it wouldn’t be exciting. 

Once you were actually inside you felt more comfortable. There were plenty of familiar faces. Mark Beaks roamed the place. Flintheart Glomgold was there. Even Roxanne Featherly was there. She asked if you and Scrooge were there together. You told her it was just for the night but she seemed to know better.

The night started off fun. You were introduced to so many people and you stole a lot of h'orderves to take back to the mansion. It was nice. Then everything changed. 

Scrooge was conversing with someone across the room, Dewey and Webby were dancing, and you stood off to the side with Huey and Louie. A woman with blonde hair caught your eye as she entered. She crossed the room and went directly to Scrooge.

“Uh oh Goldie’s back,” Louie said. 

“That’s Scrooge’s ex,” Huey explained to you. 

“Oh,” you said calmly. You grabbed a drink from a passing waiter and down the whole thing. Goldie led Scrooge away from who he was talking to and onto the dance floor. You held your glass so tight it broke in your hand.

“Um, (y/n) are you okay?” Louie asked hesitantly. 

“I’m fine why do you ask?” You replied. 

“You just broke a glass with your hand and now you’re bleeding…” Louie pointed out. You looked at your hand and you were indeed bleeding. 

“Ah,” you said calmly. Huey pulled a small first aid kit from his tuxedo. 

“Let me wrap that for you,” he said. Huey took your hand and wrapped it in some bandage. “Are you sure you’re okay?” Huey asked.

“Perfectly fine,” you forced a smile. You grabbed two more drinks and downed them both before you started walking. You didn’t walk to Scrooge and Goldie; you walked to Glomgold. “Wanna dance?” You asked him. 

“Didn’t get enough of me when you were tied up did you?” He asked with a laugh. 

“Do you want to dance or not?” You asked forcefully. Glomgold took your hand and you both went to the dance floor. You didn’t want to make Scrooge jealous of course. You just wanted to get close enough to butt in between him and Goldie. Glomgold was an ungraceful dancer, but that didn’t matter to you. You weren’t the best either. 

“So why did you kidnap me?” You asked. “Obviously you didn’t need me for ransom or anything.”

“I just like to inconvenience Scrooge,” Glomgold admitted. “He and I have been bitter rivals for years, but he has obtained hundreds of rivals. I just need to keep things up so I can be his number one rival.” 

“You two have a special relationship,” you laughed. “So how did you feel about the whole Magica thing? You know when everyone’s shadow came to life.”

“Magica had one big battle after fifteen years. That’s nothing. The trick is to bother them in little ways over time and have a big conflict every so often. That’s the key to being the best rivals.” He explained.

“Wow, you have it all figured out huh?” You said. You were actually a little impressed. Glomgold was committed to being Scrooge’s number one. The song ended before you tried cutting in with Scrooge. You hated to admit it, but you had fun with Glomgold. 

Before you even stepped off the dance floor, the band began to play another song. It was the kind of song you would switch partners during. You noticed Scrooge and Goldie stay to dance so you stayed with Glomgold. It was the perfect opportunity. When the first switch happened you didn’t get to Scrooge. Instead you found yourself with Dewey. 

“Oh hey,” you smiled. “Where’d you learn to dance to this?”

“I hear gala and I prepare for anything,” Dewey stated. You had to admit he was rather good. You looked to the side and noticed Scrooge was with Webby. Both of them looked so happy. It made your heart soar. “So why were you dancing with Flintheart Glomgold?” Dewey asked. 

“Scrooge was dancing with Goldie,” you explained. “Now he’s not.” That’s when the next switch happened. This time you ended up with Scrooge.

“So how are you enjoying things?” Scrooge asked.

“Fairly well,” you said. “How are things with the ex?” Scrooge went pale.

“I dinnae think she would be here,” Scrooge admitted. “But since she is, watch your wallet.”

“I’ll be sure to keep my eye on it,” you smiled. Dancing with Scrooge was nice while it lasted. There was one more switch and somehow you ended up with Goldie. 

“So, you’re Scroogie’s new fling,” Goldie grinned. 

“It’s nice to meet his ex. I didn’t think anyone from Scrooge’s past would still be alive. You look pretty good for someone that should be dead already,” You snarked coming off a little more rude than you wanted. “How did we even end up together?”

You both looked to your side and saw Scrooge dancing with Glomgold. You and Goldie both let out a laugh. You stopped to glare at each other for a second, but neither of you could keep a straight face after seeing Scrooge and Glomgold stepping over each other because they both wanted to lead. 

“So how did Scrooge snag someone as young and dashing as you?” Goldie asked with a much softer demeanor. 

“More like how did I snag him,” you laughed. “I was just some loser working in a diner and now I’m traveling the word and nearly dying on a weekly basis... I’m sorry I made that remark about how you should be dead. That came off a lot harsher than I intended.”

“Oh, it’s fine. I should be dead by now, but I’m not,” Goldie smiled.

“Can I have my phone back?” You asked noticing it was gone. 

“Scrooge is training you well,” Goldie laughed. She gave you back your phone. Then the song ended. You left Goldie and immediately went to Scrooge. You pulled him off the dance floor and back to Huey and Louie. 

“Curse me kilts what happened to your hand?” Scrooge asked you.

“Oh… Jealousy,” you answered with a small laugh. “I saw you and the ex then a glass broke in my hand… it was dumb. I shouldn’t be jealous. I trust you.” 

“Why don’t we get out of here and do something more fun?” Scrooge asked. You got Dewey and Webby from the crowd and you all left. You weren’t the first group to leave, but you were one of the early ones. Scrooge had the kids dropped off at the mansion. Dewey was a little upset to leave early, but he got over it. 

Scrooge took you to the bin. You took the elevator to the very top and went to his office. He opened the vault door and took you to the edge of the ledge. “Watch this,” he told you. Then he leapt from the top and dived into the gold below. You just slid down a support beam and met Scrooge at the bottom. 

“So Goldie?” You asked hoping to hear more about her. 

“Goldie O’Gilt,” Scrooge sighed. “She and I go back a long way. Too long in fact. We’ve been rivals, enemies, and partners in both senses of the word. We have a complicated relationship.” 

“I can see that. And you told her about me.” You stated. “You told her about us.”

“Of course I did. I had to let her know I’m no longer on the market. Believe it or not I’m irresistible,” Scrooge smiled. 

“Oh, I believe it,” you said. Then you gave him a gentle kiss. “Like you said. Irresistible.”

“Oh bless me bagpipes do I love you,” Scrooge rejoiced. 

“I love you too,” you smiled. You spent that night in the bin with Scrooge. It was perfect. You fell asleep with your head on Scrooge’s chest listening to his heart beat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really wanted Goldie to be introduced in here. I wanted jealous reader. I know Goldie wouldn't just show up with nothing to gain but I wanted to add her in. Also I added some more Glomgold just because he's a fun character. I'm getting close to adding in The Most Dangerous Game...Night and I really love that episode. Team Uncle gave me a will to live.


	22. The Most Dangerous Game... Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter may seem a little scatterbrained and rushed in some areas. It took me a while to write it due to life and responsibilities. I can't believe this fic is over 30,000 words. I wish I could apply this much focus to my original works lol.

You woke up long before morning and Scrooge was still awake. He ran a hand through your hair. It didn’t seem like he knew you were awake. You were comfortable despite laying on literal cold, hard cash. 

“What did I ever do to deserve someone like you?” Scrooge asked quietly. “You make me want to be a better man. I’ve been alive for so long. I’ve loved and lost so many times. Yet this love feels entirely new to me. I dinnae understand. Even after I kicked you out you came back to me. I’m so lucky for that. I absolutely adore you.” 

You thought about speaking up, but you didn’t. You stayed quiet and listened to the words coming from Scrooge’s mouth. When he was done he gently kissed the top of your head and said he loved you. 

“I love you too,” you said softly. 

“Oh, did I wake you?” Scrooge asked. 

“No, you didn’t wake me,” you said. “You have managed to leave me speechless though.” You moved so that you were laying next to Scrooge and not on his chest. 

“How much did you hear?” Scrooge asked as if embarrassed. 

“Just from ‘what did I do to deserve you?’” You answered. “I love you so much, Scrooge. I don’t feel like I can say it enough.”

“You’re shivering,” Scrooge pointed out. “Let’s go back to the mansion.” Scrooge stood and helped you up. He wrapped and arm around you to warm you up some as you walked. At the mansion Scrooge offered his room to you once again. You grabbed some pajamas so you wouldn’t have to sleep in your formalwear then you went to Scrooge’s room. You slept close to him that night. When you woke up Scrooge was already awake.

“I could definitely get used to waking up with you by my side,” you whispered hoarsely. You spent a little while laying in bed before you both decided you had to get up and go. You had adventures to go on. 

You went to multiple places in a matter of days. It was a busy time and you started to feel a little tired. You ignored it and kept pushing yourself until you ended up getting sick. It was nothing serious. You wanted to keep going, but Scrooge stopped off at the mansion to drop you off. 

“You sure you don’t want to stay with me?” You asked Scrooge. 

“I promised the kids we’d go on this one. I’ll be right back.” Scrooge promised. “You get some sleep. I love you.” Scrooge kissed your forehead then left your room. 

You tried sitting up but you were too dizzy. You laid in your bed defeated. You closed your eyes for a minute or so before you heard your door open again. Scrooge stepped in. His mouth didn’t move but you heard him say “get out” then he dropped to the ground limp. You tried desperately to move, but your couldn’t. You struggled and finally managed to pry yourself from the bed. You fell flat on your face on the cold ground. 

You got to your feet but it didn’t look like you were in your room anymore. You were in a dark room. Suddenly a light came on. It was far away from you and underneath it was the kids. They were all tied up. You tried running to them. The faster you went the further away they got. The temperature rose drastically. Lava began to pour from the walls. 

You tried harder to reach the kid but it was no use. You stumbled and fell to your knees. You felt like you couldn’t breath. Lava surrounded you. You felt helpless. 

You nearly threw yourself out of bed when you woke up. You got to your feet and immediately faltered. Mrs.Beakley ran from the other side of the bed to help you balance yourself. Then she sat you down. She felt your forehead for a moment.

“You’re burning up.” She stated. “Lay down and get some more rest.” You held on to Mrs. Beakley. 

“I just had one of the worst dreams of my life,” you panted. “Please just stay here for a moment.” Mrs. Beakley seemed surprised. 

“Fever dreams can be like that…” Beakley sighed. She didn’t move from your grip.

“How long was I out?” You asked trying to get your mind away from the dream.

“It’s been about five hours,” she answered. “Are you okay?”

“I’ll be fine.” You said. “I think I’m just going to go back to sleep. Thank you Mrs. Beakley.” You finally released your grip and laid down.

“Would you like anything? Maybe some water or an extra blanket?” Mrs. Beakley asked on her way out. 

“An extra blanket please,” you said. Mrs. Beakley nodded then left the room. You tried staying awake until she got back but you couldn’t. Thankfully this time your sleep was dreamless. 

You didn’t know how long you were asleep this time. You woke up feeling somewhat better. You weren’t at one hundred percent yet, but you were good enough to walk around. You took the second blanket that Beakley had gotten for you and wrapped it around your shoulders. Upstairs was oddly quiet. It wasn’t until you were downstairs that you saw Huey and Louie.

You followed the boys into a sitting room. The whole family was in there with the exception of Duckworth. Scrooge and Donald stood in front of everyone acting something out. When Scrooge saw you he stopped abruptly. 

“(Y/n)!” Scrooge cheered. He gave you a quick hug. “How are you feeling?” 

“Better…” you paused. “Were you imitating a mermanticore?”

“See! They get it!” Scrooge said. 

“What’s going on…?” You asked. 

“Family game night…” Mrs. Beakley sighed. “Would you like to join? Launchpad could be your partner.”

“Nah, I think I’ll just observe,” you declined. “I’m not feeling up to a game night just yet.” 

Donald and Scrooge sat down and Webby went to the front of everyone. You sat on the arm of Scrooge’s chair. Mrs. Beakley called out “go!” and Webby rushed to the bowl on the coffee table to pull out what she had to act. 

“Oh, this is easy,” Webby stated. As soon as she began you knew the answer was Scrooge. 

“Sour!” Dewey shouted. “Sour grapes! Old fruit! Hat… Fruit hat! A guy who wears a fruit hat! Bowler full of smoothies! Nailed it? Money? Expensive smoothies! Smoothies with cash in them! Swim away from the smoothies! An old man… Prune Smoothies! No?”

“Time!” Mrs. Beakley called.

“It was Scrooge McDuck!” Webby shouted. 

“...but Uncle Scrooge doesn’t like smoothies.” Dewey said defeated. 

“Eh just a slight hiccup!” Webby laughed nervously. “Teamwork makes the dream work! Right?” Dewey had a look of forced agreement. 

“Huey?” Mrs. Beakley said.

“Nothing is weird!” Huey yelled. “Did you say somethin? I’m not saying anything!”

“Because this is charades and those are the rules!” Louie cut in. “Very good Huey!” Louie was about to start his turn until you heard someone say “do the bidding of your god-king” behind you. 

“What was that?” Scrooge asked. 

“Yup great guess Huey! ‘Do the bidding of your god-king’ says it right there!” Louie practically yelled keeping Scrooge from turning around. You were sure Louie was up to something. You were just too drained to deal with it. Louie grabbed Huey and ran out of the room with the excuse he was getting snacks. 

Mrs. Beakley gave you the stopwatch to time her round with Launchpad. They scored a few points but ultimately they came in second place. When their round was done, Launchpad went to join Huey and Louie in getting snacks. 

“I wish you could have been up when we chose partners,” Scrooge whispered to you. “You would have been my first choice.”

“We both know that’s a lie,” you said with a hushed laugh. “You can win easier with Donald as a partner. But that’s okay. It would have just given me a greater challenge in beating you.” You winked playfully. 

Mrs. Beakley left to check on Launchpad while Dewey and Webby set up a game of Jenga. Just as soon as Mrs. Beakley went she came back and explained Launchpad left and she was going to her room. You thought about offering to be her partner, but she didn’t really seem like she wanted to be there. 

The game of Jenga was ridiculously stressful to watch. After Scrooge’s first successful move he and Donald cheered “Team Uncle” and hugged. Then they awkwardly seperated and shook hands. Webby and Dewey took their turn just as Huey and Louie came back in the room. You sat with Scrooge and didn’t pay much attention to what was going on. You were still tired but you wanted to be around the family. You wanted to be around Scrooge. 

The tower collapsing tore your focus away from Scrooge. Louie and Huey panicked and scrambled to the tower. They sorted through the pieces yelling.

“Calm down guys. It’s just a game,” Webby said. 

“Yeah a game you lost for us…” Dewey mumbled. 

Louie got a phone call. When he answered he and Huey cheered. They were so happy it literally brought tears to their eyes. You all just stared awkwardly at them. 

“It’s nice to talk to friends on the phone…” Louie explained with a sob. “It’s so much more personal than texting.” Oh, something was definitely going on. 

“Okay… Next game!” Scrooge announced. You all went into the dining room to play Scrooge-opoly. Dewey pointed out that the game was definitely tilted in Scrooge’s favor. He denied the accusation and kept things moving. Everyone decided to play individually this time so you were on Scrooge’s team in spirit. At least you knew you would win. 

Just as Dewey said, the game was absolutely tilted for Scrooge to win. He was dominating. Then you noticed the strange device overhead. There was a flash of light that blinded you. When you could see again you were shrunken down and standing on the game board. There was an entire tribe of people that had Gyro and Launchpad tied up. 

“Never a dull moment,” you sighed. You were pushed forward by some of the tribe members. A flash of light from the device hit one of them causing them to grow. 

“Everybody listen!” Louie’s voice boomed.

“Louie?!” Everyone said in unison. 

“Launchpad, crash your way out of there to break them up,” Louie commanded. 

“Okay. But what do I crash with? I don’t see anything crashable.” Launchpad said while unknowingly using Gyro and the stick they were tied together with to crash around. 

Scrooge, Donald, and (y/n), corral the Gyropuddlians onto Barks Place,” Louie continued. You all followed Louie’s directions. You had to fight in order to get it done. “Huey, show ‘em what a Senior Junior Woodchuck can do! Dewey Webby get up to those flies.” 

“Shouldn’t Scrooge and Donald do it?” Dewey asked.

“Kinda busy now, kids!” Scrooge called out. 

“Yeah, I don’t think I can handle these guys by myself right now,” you chimed in. 

“But Scrooge and Donald are totally in sync!” Webby argued while fighting off a Gyropuddlian. 

“Are you daft?” Scrooge asked. “I’m a billionaire, he’s a moocher that lives in that pool and eats my food!” 

“Hey!” Donald yelled in objection. Then he was thrown into Scrooge knocking them both down. You distracted some of the Gyropuddlians from ganging up on Scrooge and Donald. 

“We lost every game! We argue and we have nothing in common!” Webby stated. 

“Outside of adventure how are we even friends?” Dewey asked. 

“Of course you’re not friends!” Scrooge said while swinging Donald around to fight off the Gyropuddlians. “You drive each other crazier than anyone could and still care about each other more than anyone. You’re not friends. You’re family! Now move!” Scrooge knocked Donald into a Gyropuddlian making him fall back and hit a card Dewey and Webby were standing on. It launched them up to the flies holding the device. 

You, Scrooge, Donald, Launchpad, and Gyro cornered the Gyropuddlians onto the Barks Place square. Louie grabbed the device and shrunk the Gyropuddlian that previously grew. When he fell to the board, Louie trapped him and the rest of the Gyropuddlians under one of the top hat game pieces. Then he got you and everyone else back to their normal size. 

“So, I believe it was my turn.” Scrooge said taking the dice in hand. 

You helped Donald clean up all the games while Scrooge called Louie to his study. Scrooge took the Scrooge-opoly board with him. None of you were really upset with anything that happened. Gyro seemed a little irritated, but other than that you all had a fun adventure. 

When Scrooge was done with Louie he joined you, Donald, Launchpad, and Gyro in the sitting room. You were playing Jenga. It was Donald’s turn when Scrooge walked in. The tower fell as soon as Scrooge sat down. You, Gyro, and Launchpad cheered. 

“Looks like Team Uncle just lost!” You cheered. “Team Employee reigns supreme.” 

Scrooge grumbled that it wasn’t fair because he just sat down and your team was three people but his was only two. He challenged you to a rematch and you accepted. 

“So I’m guessing you guys almost died in the first Jenga collapse,” you said to Launchpad and Gyro.

“Yup,” Launchpad said with a smile as he took his turn. He and Gyro told about what happened the entire time they were shrunk. The night carried on until everyone was tired and ready to go home. Scrooge tried convincing everyone to stay for one more game but they declined. Launchpad took Gyro home and Donald went to his boat. You packed away the last of the games with Scrooge. 

You were still a little sick, but Scrooge still offered his bed to you. You fell asleep after Scrooge told you about the adventure he went on with the kids. Louie was tired and was the one to suggest game night. He may have initiated the chain of events that led to the Gyropuddlians attacking, but he also saved the day. Scrooge was so proud of him. You were pretty proud of him too.


	23. Going Public

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Spoilers) I absolutely loved todays episode and I know I've written Glomgold since the Shadow War but I will find a way to incorporate Duke Baloney in this. Also!!! I absolutely can't wait for the Three Caballeros!!!! I love those boys so much. The next update might take a while. I'm starting my internship so Monday and Wednesday I'll be working and Tuesday and Thursday I'll be at school. It's going to be a long week.

You were awake in the middle of the night since you had already slept a lot. You watched Scrooge sleep for a while. Love warmed your heart. Scrooge stirred a bit and unconsciously moved his arm around you. You were grateful for moments like that. 

You had a family. You had four kids that you loved dearly and would do anything for. You had the fellow employees that you could talk to about anything. You had a Donald that welcomed you despite the awkward circumstances. And you had your boyfriend. The man you loved and adored and admired. It was perfection. 

You thought about all of this a lot. You thought about how great everything was. You thought about how lucky you were. You came from a lonely life and now there were so many people around you. There was so much love around you. Your life was full. 

You started thinking about the fever dream you had. You knew none of it would ever happen. Scrooge wouldn’t kick you out again. Especially because now you didn’t have an old life to go back to. You worked for Scrooge now and you lived in the mansion. He wouldn’t kick you out onto the streets. You also knew you’d always be able to save the kids and if you couldn’t someone else would. 

Suddenly Scrooge jolted awake. He sat straight up panting. You sat up next to him. 

“Scrooge, are you okay?” you asked. 

“Yes, it was just a nightmare…” he said catching his breath. You wrapped your arms around him to comfort him. He sunk into your arms as he calmed down. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” you asked. 

“No, no. It’s fine.” Scrooge said. “Just hold me a little longer.” He said in a more playful tone. You kept Scrooge in your arms. You didn’t want to let him go at all. 

“So what’s on the agenda for today, Scroogie?” you asked.

“I thought we would stay in today,” Scrooge said. “Louie wanted to take a break. I guess I have been pushing the adventures lately. I mean you even got sick.”

“That’s my fault though,” you said. “I pushed myself too much when I first started feeling bad. I could have come home at any moment. Even when I got sick I just wanted to keep going. Your never stop attitude is rubbing off on me.” 

“How are you feeling now?” Scrooge asked.

“I’m better.” you said. “Actually I’m fantastic with you here. I love you Scrooge.” 

“I love you too,” Scrooge smiled. “What do you say to a day of just you and me? Now that we are officially something I’m sure Mrs. Beakley won’t force Donald to be our chaperone.”

“Officially something. What a title,” you joked. 

“Okay, now that we are officially dating,” Scrooge corrected. “We can make it officially official and go public.” 

“Are you sure about that?” You asked. 

“You’ve already been kidnapped by Glomgold once. I know you can handle yourself.” Scrooge smiled. “I want the world to know about us.” You looked at the time. It was still early enough for you to get to the news station. 

“Get ready. We have to get to the news station before Roxanne starts her morning show.” You said as you hopped out of bed. “I promised her she’d be the first to know.” Before Scrooge could respond you left the room to get dressed. You had to go all the way back to your room to get ready. When you got to the foyer Scrooge was already by the door. Launchpad was already parked outside. 

“Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean it’s Roxanne Featherly…” Scrooge groaned. 

“I’m sure. She won’t try anything bad trust me. I’ll ruin her life if she does.” You said calmly.

“You have a dark side.” Scrooge laughed. “I like it.” 

You held Scrooge’s hand the whole way to the news studio. You were nervous. Of course you couldn’t wait to tell the world your heart belonged to Scrooge McDuck. You were just worried about what could happen afterwards. Whatever did happen, you and Scrooge had each other and a whole family to back you up. 

Once at the news studio you didn’t have to say or do anything. People saw Scrooge McDuck and they didn’t ask questions. They just let him walk on in. You kept a grip on his hand. Then you spotted Roxanne. She seemed to be the only person that didn’t bow down to Scrooge. Before even acknowledging him she walked to you.

“(Y/n) how great to see you again!” Roxanne cheered. “And with your ‘boss’ huh?”

“Well, I did tell you that you’d be the first to know if we became anything more,” you said shyly. “We’re dating.”

“How wonderful!” She smiled. “I do have room on my show this morning if you’d like to do another short interview on the matter.”

“Absolutely! Just remember not to go too far,” your mood shifted to a more serious one as you spoke. 

“I shouldn’t have to. Scrooge dating someone as young as you will be scandalous enough,” Roxanne snarked. You noticed Scrooge’s anger beginning to show. 

“Don’t worry, we can handle this,” you whispered to Scrooge. “Just like it would be scandalous if word got out that you were dating your assistant.” You said to Roxanne. She was shocked. 

“H-how did you know that?” Roxanne asked. 

“I didn’t,” you laughed. “I was just making something up. Wow…”

“Okay, I won’t bring up the age gap. I can be civilized.” Roxanne smiled. “You really do remind me of myself.”

You sat in the same area as your first interview with Roxanne. You held Scrooge’s hand nervously as you waited. Last time Roxanne had you in and out as the first segment. This time she did a few other things first. You didn’t realize how fast your heart was beating. You never had to do something like this. When you dated someone there was no formal announcement to the world. However this time you weren’t dating just someone. You were dating Scrooge McDuck, the richest duck in the world. 

“Are you two ready?” Roxanne asked as she sat in the chair opposite you. You gave an unconvincing nod, but it didn’t matter if you were ready or not. Within seconds the cameras were on. “Welcome back!” Roxanne cheered. “Today we have two very special guests, (y/n) and Scrooge McDuck and they have a very special announcement. (Y/n)?”

“That’s right Roxanne,” you were less confident than the first time you were on the show. “I said that you would be the first to know if Scrooge and I became an item and well…”

“...We’re an item.” Scrooge continued your sentence. 

“Wow, already completing each other’s sentences,” Roxanne smiled. “How did this happen?”

“We’ve just gotten close during our adventures.” You explained. “I’ve seen the way he acts and the way he thinks. I’ve just fallen for him.”

“(Y/n) is one of the brightest people I have ever met,” Scrooge added. “They have adapted well to my life and my family. I’m very happy to have met them.”

“Scrooge, you aren’t afraid that (y/n) is a gold digger?” Roxanne asked. You could see Scrooge’s anger. You grabbed his hand and spoke up.

“I’m not. Scrooge could lose all his money and I’d still be happy being with him.” You said. Scrooge took a deep breath to calm himself. “Besides, if I was after his money I would have snuck into the bin, grabbed whatever I wanted, and skipped town by now.” You joked. 

“How long do you two see this relationship lasting?” Roxanne continued. 

“How long does anyone want a relationship to last?” Scrooge asked rhetorically. “I’m sure we will be together for a long time.”

“So do you see marriage in your future?” Roxanne asked. 

“It’s a little early to talk about marriage,” you laughed nervously. “I mean maybe one day, but we can discuss that later down the road.” 

“Will there be any kids?”

You and Scrooge both let out a chuckle. Kids were the furthest thing from both of your minds. You had the boys and Webby to watch after. Sure they weren’t your kids, but they were still family. 

“We haven’t even discussed marriage let alone kids,” Scrooge laughed. 

“Besides, we have Scrooge’s nephews and… niece that we sometimes look after,” you hesitated before saying niece. Webby called him uncle so you figured niece would be an appropriate term. “I love those kids like they were my own.” 

“Well isn’t that sweet,” Roxanne smiled. “That’s just about all the time we have for our show. I want to thank you both for coming today. It was really nice to see you two.”

“It was nice to see you too Roxanne!” You emoted. Roxanne turned to the camera to close out her show with some final words. When you were done you left the studio with Scrooge. 

News travelled far too fast. By the time you left the parking lot people were already posting about it on social media. By the time you reached the mansion there was paparazzi outside the gates. When you got inside the mansion you received a phone call you definitely weren’t expecting. 

“Hello?” You answered an anonymous call.

“Hi is this (y/n)?” The person asked. You instantly recognized the voice. 

“...dad?”


	24. The Real Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a delayed chapter. Life is real busy. DuckTales is keeping me grounded lol. I am STOKED for the Three Caballeros episode. Panchito Pistoles is one of my all time favorite characters and from the promos this episode looks pretty promising. I'm probably going to cover cousin Fethry and Duke Baloney soon just because I can't wait to work with The Caballeros.

“...dad?” you asked. You hadn’t talked to your dad in years. When you were passed from relative to relative he called you at least once a month. When you moved into your apartment you spoke less and less frequently until neither of you tried contacting the other. You didn’t need him and obviously he didn’t need you. 

“How’re you doing, kiddo?” he asked. You knew exactly why he was calling. 

“What do you care?” You asked angrily. Scrooge and Launchpad both stopped dead in their tracks. Neither of them had seen you that angry. If this was any other time you would just be surprised to hear from him. You may have even been happy to reconnect. But you knew he was only calling because it was announced that you were dating the richest duck in the world. 

“What a dad can’t call his kid?” he laughed. 

“I haven’t heard from you since my twenty-first birthday. Why haven’t you called since?”

“Why haven’t you?”

“Because I don’t need you. I never have.” You noticed Scrooge and Launchpad glance at each other then look back at you. 

“I know what you’re thinking,” your dad sighed. “I’m not calling for money or anything. I want to try harder as a father. I want to be a part of your life.”

“And you only had this realization after it became public that I’m dating Scrooge McDuck?” you fumed. “That’s kind of hard to believe. I think you missed your chance to be part of my life.” You hung up and turned off your phone. 

“Are you okay?” Scrooge asked. 

“I’m fine,” you lied. “I’m just gonna go on a walk.” You shoved your phone in your pocket and walked outside. If it wasn’t for the paparazzi at the gate you would have gone into the city. You walked around the mansion and found a tree to climb. You didn’t want anyone to find you for a while. 

You were upset. You expected that day to be better. You finally got to tell the world you were dating Scrooge. You could handle the shocked expressions and the paparazzi hounding you. You expected that. What you didn’t expect was your father calling. It managed to bring your whole mood down. You sat in the tree for what felt like hours. 

“(Y/n)!” Webby yelled from the ground. You peaked your head out of the tree branches. “There’s someone here for you!”

“How did you know I was out here?” you asked. 

“This is the same tree Huey climbs when he’s upset.” Webby explained. “I think you need to come back to the mansion.”

You sighed and jumped out of the tree. You took your time walking. You were in no rush to get back to the mansion. Whoever was there for you could wait a while. Webby walked with you.

“I guess you and Scrooge are really official huh?” Webby asked trying to break the tense silence.

“Yeah the whole world knows now,” you said. 

“So do you really love us like your own?” 

“Of course Webby,” you smiled. “You kids mean the world to me. Even if Scrooge and I were to split up I’d stick around for you guys.” 

You reached the mansion and Webby walked with you to the sitting room downstairs. You took a deep breath before entering. It was exactly as you feared. 

“What the hell is he doing here?” you asked. Both Scrooge and your father stood. 

“I think that’s my que to leave,” Webby said just before she left. 

“Hey kiddo, you weren’t at your apartment so I came here,” your father said. 

“Scrooge why would you let this man in the house?” you demanded. “You know what I don’t need to know. I don’t need to be here right now. I can’t be here right now. I’m leaving.” You started walking out but Scrooge caught up with you by the time you reached the foyer.

“(Y/n) just take a deep breath,” Scrooge said. 

“Scrooge, I can’t talk to him right now. I haven’t talked to my father in years,” you ranted. “He’s literally only here because we announced that we’re a thing. He has more interest in you than he does in me.”

“I invited him here,” Scrooge admitted. 

“You what?” You growled. “Why would you do that?”

“You supported me when I went to the dismal downs and I got closer to my father. I figured I could help you with yours.” Scrooge explained. 

“Not everyone can have their daddy issues fixed like you!” you snapped. You paused for a second and realized you had just yelled at Scrooge. “I’m sorry. You just shouldn’t have brought him here. I’m not ready for this. He literally just called me this morning. How did you even find him?”

“I’m Scrooge McDuck. I have my ways,” Scrooge smiled. “Just give him a chance. Even if he is here for me and my fortune it’s not like he’ll get it. I don’t just give handouts.” Scrooge took your hand. “I’m right here. You don’t have to do this alone.”

“Ugh fine,” you groaned. “Let’s get this over with.” You walked back to the sitting room with Scrooge. You didn’t want to sit on the couch with your father so you sat on the arm of Scrooge’s chair. 

“I wanted to call you before this I swear,” your father pleaded. “I saw you on Roxanne’s show and I took it as a sign to contact you.”

“Wait, you watched Roxanne’s show? Did you watch the first one I was on?... Do you live in Duckburg?” You had a realization. 

“I did not see the first one you were on. I just recently moved just outside the city,” he admitted. 

“And not once did you try to contact me, interesting.” You scoffed. 

“I know this is incredibly bad timing. I just wanted to check on you,” he said. “I will admit it’s very weird to me that my kid is dating a man old enough to be my father.”

“Why does everyone bring up the age thing?” you hissed. “We get it. It’s weird for everyone.”

“Anyways… how did this happen? Last I heard you were working at a diner and saving up for college.” You father said trying to carry on a conversation. 

“He came into the diner one day,” you said. “I didn’t even realize it was him until he left. Then there was an incident at his money bin and I went to take pictures. I spotted him and from that point on there just seemed to be something. My apartment was broken into and I lost all my money so Scrooge offered me a room here and things spiraled from there.”

“Wow, it seems like fate kind of brought y’all together huh?” he laughed. 

“What have you been doing dad?” You asked. 

“I was working in Mouseton for a while and I lost my job. I moved to Duckburg and started working for, well, him,” your dad pointed to Scrooge. “I mean not him, but his company. It was either McDuck or Glomgold and I got here right around the time Flintheart Glomgold disappeared. I took that as a sign.”

“Well at least I know how Scrooge track you down,” you glanced at Scrooge. “Glomgold disappeared right after the gala right? You’ve only been here for over a week then.”

“If I may just say, you chose the right company to go with,” Scrooge intervened. 

“Thank you, Scrooge,” you father said. 

“Until you’re on better grounds with your child I suggest you call me Mr. McDuck,” Scrooge advised. 

“Yes, sir.” 

“This is making the whole situation a lot weirder…” you sighed. “Do either of you want anything? Tea? Water? No? I’ll be right back.” You had to leave the room for a moment. You made your way to the kitchen and found Launchpad, Duckworth, and Mrs. Beakley. 

“How’s the chat with your father going?” Mrs. Beakley asked. 

“I would literally rather be anywhere else right now,” you said. “Did anyone tell Scrooge this was a bad idea?”

“All of us,” Mrs. Beakley replied. “Even Launchpad.”

“Yeah, after that phone call this morning it just didn’t seem like you wanted your dad here, but I’ve been wrong before,” Launchpad said.

“Well you definitely aren’t wrong now,” you huffed. “I really don’t want to go back in there.” 

“Just make Scrooge think you’ve reconciled with your father and you’ll probably never have to deal with him again,” Mrs. Beakley suggested.

“Maybe…” you sighed before leaving the kitchen. You slowly made your way back to the sitting room. You were about to turn the corner when you heard Scrooge yelling. You stopped to listen. 

“Are you daft?! Do you have a need to hurt your child?! I should have never even invited you here!” Scrooge hollered. “You’re lucky I don’t fire you right here right now! Get out of my house!” You heard footsteps leave the room. You waited a moment before you went in.

“Hey, where’d my dad go?” You asked as if you didn’t know. Scrooge stood upon hearing your voice.

“Oh, uh, he left. He had to get back to work,” Scrooge lied. 

“But you invited him here? Shouldn’t that be a valid excuse to miss work?” You asked trying to lure Scrooge into telling you the truth. 

“Well, I wouldn’t have become the richest duck in the world by relying on excuses,” Scrooge said. 

“I heard you yell at him…” you finally admitted.

“Are you upset?” Scrooge asked. 

“No, I trust you did the right thing,” you said. “I told you he didn’t really want to fix things with me. You don’t have to tell me what happened. I don’t want to know.”

“I shouldn’t have brought him here.” Scrooge sighed.

“Yeah, obviously,” you scolded. “It’s fine… It would have been nice if he was really here for me, but he wasn’t. He never has been.” Scrooge placed a hand on your shoulder and you moved away. “I think I just need to be alone for a while.” You walked out of the sitting room and made your way to your room. 

You were curious to know what your father had said, but you thought it would be better not knowing. If it was enough for Scrooge to kick him out and threaten firing him it must have been something really bad. You were upset, but not surprised. It was a long time before you heard a knock at the door. You pulled yourself to your feet and opened it. 

“Come with me,” Scrooge said as he took your hand.

“Scrooge I-”

“Just trust me,” Scrooge smiled. You let Scrooge lead you down to the dining room. Before you went in Scrooge stopped. 

“You didn’t invite some other family member I don’t want to see did you?” You asked bitterly.

“No, just the ones you do want to see. Your real family,” Scrooge said. He opened to door showing everyone sitting at the table. Webby, Huey, Dewey, Louie, Donald, Mrs. Beakley, Duckworth, Launchpad, and even Fenton, Gyro, and Manny were there. “I thought we could have a dinner to celebrate the announcement.” Scrooge whispered to you. 

“...does Manny… eat?” you asked awkwardly. 

“Good question, I guess we’ll figure that out tonight.” Scrooge laughed. He took his place at the end of the table and you sat next to him and Webby. 

You never saw Manny actually eat, but as the night went on there was less food on his plate. It was a nice dinner. Scrooge was right, it was the family you wanted to see. When you all finished eating you went to a sitting room to chat. 

“How’s your mom Fenton?” you asked. 

“M’ma is doing well,” Fenton responded. “She would have been here tonight, but she had to work.” 

“Tell her I said hi when you get home. I’ll make sure to pack you some leftovers for her,” you smiled.

“Why am I even here?” You heard Gyro say. 

“You were here for family game night Gyro, you’re family now,” Scrooge told him. 

“Well, it’s a step up from when he told Magica I was just an employee,” Gyro mumbled. 

“This is one hell of a family,” you said to yourself as you looked around the room. The kids were sitting around the coffee table playing games. Donald and Mrs. Beakley watched the kids fondly as they talked. Duckworth and Manny seemed to get along rather well. It was probably a supernatural thing. Fenton, Gyro, Launchpad, and Scrooge sat nearby talking with you. You could have never seen yourself calling this strange group your family, but you couldn’t be happier having them around. 

Before Fenton, Gyro, Manny, and Launchpad left you and Mrs. Beakley gave them some of the leftovers from dinner. You helped with the dishes before going to bed. You went to Scrooge’s room instead of your own. You liked sleeping next to him. It was comfortable. You slept well that night. The world new of your relationship with Scrooge and you got to have a night with your family. Despite everything that happened with your father, it was a perfect day.


	25. Trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't wait for tomorrow's episode with the Three Caballeros. I have been screaming about it for weeks and I am stoked. I kinda blanked on part of this chapter and I was writing on auto-pilot but it's still pretty good.

A few days after the family dinner you found yourself sitting in Scrooge’s office watching Scrooge and Donald try to organize the place. You didn’t realize how much stuff had been collected and how much stuff had been delivered. Normally Mrs. Beakley would help, but Scrooge asked Donald. Their relationship really seemed to grow a lot stronger. 

Huey helped carry in a large crate and the second Donald and Scrooge left the room he opened it revealing a tree stump. Huey seemed over excited for it and studied it for a long time. He told you to keep an eye on it while he ran to get Dewey. You sat in Scrooge’s chair looking at the phones on his desk. Huey ran back in draggin Dewey behind him. Dewey was in nothing but a towel and soaking wet. 

“.. now here’s the amazing part!” Huey exclaimed. “The vascular cambium displays the distinct growth rings the exact same distance apart. Factoring out drought deformity means this tree Scrooge found experienced three leap years in a row!”

“You dragged me out of the bath for this?” Dewey asked. Huey didn’t even acknowledge the question. He just started licking the stump. “What are you doing now?!” Dewey exclaimed. 

“Tasting for resin samples. They can- ow splinter…” Huey said then pulled a splinter out of his tongue. 

“Huey, sweetie, don’t lick the tree again please,” you said with concern. 

“I said don’t interrupt me unless something exciting happens,” Dewey scoffed. 

“What’s more exciting than dendrochronology?” Huey asked. 

“Ghouls, goblins, time paradoxes, daring quests that will cement our names in history. You get the idea.” Dewey answered. 

“Well, the three leap year thing is kind of a time paradox right?” you tried chiming in. “I mean not quite a paradox but it is an anomaly.” Suddenly one of the phones on Scrooge’s desk rang.

“Brrring, brrring, answer me please, brrring,” a voice from the can phone called. 

“Do either of you know what that’s about?” You asked the boys. They both shook their heads. 

“What are you kids doing mucking about in my office?” Scrooge asked as he carried in a large framed picture. 

Huey moved back to the tree to explain to Scrooge why it was interesting, “the vascular cambium displays-” 

“More importantly,” Dewey cut him off, “your… can is ringing.”

“Tatter me tartan!” Scrooge said. He left Donald struggling to lift the picture. You went ahead and helped Donald pick it up. It was heavier than you expected. “Do not answer that,” Scrooge continued with a sigh. “That can is your cousin Fethry calling from a top secret deep sea laboratory.”

“Top secret?!” Dewey exclaimed.

“Deep sea laborator?!” Huey chimed in.

“Don’t get too excited. Fethry’s a bit… Well he’s um...” 

“He’s cuckoo bananas,” Donald finished Scrooge’s thought. 

“Best to ignore it.” Scrooge said covering the phone with his hat. “Every time we get a call from Fethry, we rush down there just to go on some fool’s errand wrapped up in a needlessly dangerous adventure with rambling lectures.”

“And the explosions.” Donald added. You set down the picture. 

“And avoiding that mega-tsunami,” Scrooge listed. 

“And the explosions…” Donald repeated. 

“All to see a barnacle formation in the shape of a tractor or some nonsense.” Scrooge concluded. 

“Big waste of time.” Donald said. The can continued to ring as Scrooge took his hat back. He and Donald left the room.

“Brrring brrring, adventure calling!” Fethry called from the phone. “I’ve made a bold new discovery!” The boys looked at you for a moment. You ran to the door and peeked outside to see if Scrooge or Donald were around. 

“Go for it boys,” you said quietly. The boys lept at the can phone and you left the room to keep Donald and Scrooge distracted for a moment. Really you should have dragged Scrooge to see Fethry since he made you face your father, but you were over it. You figured the boys could get their dangerous adventure fill and if it was a deep sea lab they’d probably have Launchpad with them anyways. 

You helped bring in another picture in a large frame and the boys were already gone. By the time you hung the painting Scrooge noticed the can phone had gone silent and it was properly hung up. 

“That’s funny,” Scrooge said. “Fethry usually doesn’t give up for hours.”

“Maybe he got busy,” you excused. 

“Did the boys answer this phone…?” Scrooge grumbled. 

“How should I know. I was with you guys,” you said. It was obvious you knew. 

“Did you let the boys go see cousin Fethry!?” Donald yelled. 

“Relax, Donald,” you said putting a hand on his shoulder. “If they do go see Fethry, they’ll need the sub so Launchpad will be with them… okay yeah just realized what I said, but I stand by it. Launchpad is Dewey’s best friend. He won’t let anything bad happen to the kids.”

Scrooge immediately went to the radio to contact the sub. “Launchpad! Did you steal the submarine?!” Scrooge hollered. There was a sharp static noise then nothing. “Something tells me Launchpad doesn’t know he stole it…”

“Well, now all we can do is sit and wait,” you said. “They boys will be fine. They go on crazy adventures every week. Besides Huey is brilliant and Dewey can handle just about anything.” 

“That’s not going to stop me from worrying about them,” Donald grumbled. 

“Of course not. I’m even worried about them,” you laughed. “But I trust that they can manage it. Obviously you two have had your fair share of Fethry’s calls and you guys came out alright.” 

“Those boys are in trouble when they get back,” Scrooge said. 

“In trouble for stealing the sub right?” You asked. “Because technically I did give them permission to answer the phone… I’m not in trouble right?” Scrooge and Donald looked at each other then walked away. “...I’m in trouble.” You walked around the mansion until you found Webby and Louie. 

“Have you seen Huey or Dewey?” Webby asked. 

“Uh, yeah. They’re actually with Launchpad,” you said. You told Louie and Webby about Fethry and how the boys stole the sub and how it was partially your fault. 

“Is that why Uncle Donald and Uncle Scrooge looked so irritated?” Louie asked.

“Probably… you guys want to do anything today? I’m already in trouble. I might as well actually have fun.” You laughed. “We can do something easy like go to Funzo’s Funzone.”

“Actually I think we’re still banned from Funzo’s,” Webby said. 

“That actually doesn’t surprise me at all,” you said. “There’s gotta be something you guys want to do.”

“Can you fly a plane?” Louie asked. 

“I can drive a car,” you answered. “I also know where the keys are. Huey and Dewey already stole the sub and they kind of stole Launchpad too so what could possibly go wrong if we take the car?”

You grabbed the keys and ran to the car with Louie and Webby. You made sure they buckled up before you took off. You made sure to be quick so Scrooge wouldn’t notice. You didn’t really succeed. Your phone started to ring so you tossed it to Webby. She answered it and put it on speaker phone. 

“Hi Uncle Scrooge!” Webby said. 

“Webbigail? Where’s (y/n)?” Scrooge asked. 

“They’re driving.” Webby answered. 

“It wasn’t enough my submarine was stolen now one of the cars?!” Scrooge yelled so you could hear him.

“Sorry Scrooge,” you said. “I was already in trouble for encouraging Huey and Dewey. I figured I might as well get in trouble for something actually bad. We can talk when I get back to the mansion okay?”

“Have you one completely daft?!” Scrooge yelled. 

“Yeah, probably… Webby go ahead and hang up,” you said in a more hushed tone.

“Webbigail do not-”

Louie reached over and ended the call. “Wow, Uncle Scrooge seems really upset. Are you sure you want to do this?” Louie asked. 

“Yeah, the longer it takes to get back to the mansion the better,” you said. “Webby you told me about Terrafirmians in the old subways right? Do you want to go check on all that?”

“No!” Webby shouted. “...I-I mean not today. Maybe another time. Maybe we should just go back to the mansion…” 

“We’re already out,” Louie said. “We might as well just go see a movie or something.”

“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea,” Webby sighed. You were a little worried about her outburst, but you let it go until you got to the movie theater. You parked and walked Louie and Webby inside. Louie went to grab snacks as you and Webby got tickets. 

“Hey, are you alright Webby?” you asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine, why do you ask?” Webby smiled. 

“You seemed a little, I don’t know, not Webby normal in the car,” you said. 

“Oh… yeah…” Webby sighed. “I guess I just miss Lena. She was there during our little subway adventure. I just want to remember that adventure as it was. With Lena.” 

“I can only imagine how much it hurt to lose her, Webby. I understand that you don’t want to go back to the subway tunnels.” You said. “It’s okay to miss her and it’s okay to be sad about it. Remember I’m around if you want to talk. That is if Scrooge doesn’t kick me out after today.”

“Nah, he won’t kick you out. He loves you,” Webby said simply. You got the movie tickets and helped Louie carry the snacks to the theater. You sat between the kids and watched the movie, but you didn’t really watch the movie. Your mind was elsewhere. 

You were absolutely terrified to go back to the mansion. You didn’t know what possessed you to make things worse. All you could do was get home and apologize.

When the movie finished you got tickets for another one then another one. After the final movie you started making your way back to the car. You noticed an awful lot of people watching you. Some were whispering. You tried shrugging it off but you suddenly felt vulnerable and afraid. When you got outside you were crowded by all sorts of people. Some asked questions and others tried taking your picture. You held onto Louie and Webby’s hands and just kept walking. 

You got to the car and made sure the kids were okay. You turned on the car and got out of there as fast as possible. When you got back to the mansion the kids went inside and you stayed in the car for a minute. You felt panicked. Being surrounded by so many people kind of freaked you out. 

The car door swung open. It was Scrooge. He looked angry then his expression softened into one of concern. 

“Are you okay?” Scrooge asked. You had only then realized you had tears flowing from your eyes. 

“Yeah,” you said wiping your eyes. “I really am. I don’t even know why I’m crying. I think the crowd just freaked me out.” Scrooge took your hand to pull you out of the car and wrapped you in a hug. You pulled away from him. “Really I’m fine. I just don’t want to be touched right now,” you told him. 

“Alright,” Scrooge said. “Let’s at least get you inside.” Scrooge walked beside you all the way to his room. You didn’t even think to go to your own. 

“I’m sorry by the way,” you said once inside Scrooge’s room. “I told the boys to go for it this morning then I kind of stole your car with Louie and Webby. I was just kind of reckless today.”

“It’s okay,” Scrooge said. “I’m reckless ninety-nine percent of the time. I shouldn’t have been upset with you this morning. The boys would have gone whether you allowed them too or not. Like you said at least they had Launchpad with them and Fethry too. I knew Louie and Webbigail would be okay with you. I was mostly shocked that you would steal my car. I didn’t even know you could drive.”

“Of course I can drive. I just could never afford a car before you and I know Launchpad likes driving.” You said. “Donald is probably still pretty upset with me, but I’ll talk to him in the morning. I think I suppressed a panic attack when I was crowded by paparazzi and now I’m exhausted.” You crawled into bed and were asleep in minutes. 

First thing the next morning you apologized to Donald for encouraging the boys to answer Fethry’s call. Donald seemed better since the boys were at home and safe. Donald was just a concerned father figure and you respected him for that. He really loved his boys. Knowing Donald and Scrooge weren’t upset made you feel a hundred times better. You could breathe easier.


	26. Duke Baloney

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If it isn't obvious already this chapter kind of makes it apparent that Webby is my favorite of the kids. When the Ballad of Duke Baloney aired I was screaming when Glomgold pulled Webby into the water. I was ready to throw hands with a fictional duck. So this chapter definitely conveys my emotion from that. Also The Town Where Everyone Was Nice cured my depression and watered my crops. I absolutely can't wait to write that episode into the story and I'm excited for the next episode as well.

You heard the news about Zan Owlson. She took over as active CEO of Glomgold Industries because Glomgold was still missing. It had been about a month before Glomgold Industries appointed her. It was yet another month before you got to meet her. Scrooge and Zan wanted to come together so their companies could both help do more good in Duckburg. 

On your way to the meeting with Zan you looked back on how much had changed. It had been about seven months since you met Scrooge. In that time your entire life had shifted. You went from a simple life with a crappy job and an even crappier apartment to living with your billionaire boyfriend and his incredible family. You stared down death and danger several times and had even been kidnapped. It was such a wild ride. 

You met Zan for the first time at a press conference. She was very open and welcoming. She seemed the complete opposite of Glomgold. When you called her Miss Owlson she said to just call her Zan. She didn’t try bringing up your relationship with Scrooge other than to wish you a long and happy time together. It was refreshing not to have someone mention the age gap or any of the other oddities surrounding your relationship.

After the press conference you sat in on a meeting between Zan and Scrooge. You were technically still an employee of Scrooge’s so you were there to take pictures. It was an odd feeling to be in Glomgold’s office and not feel any form of hostility. 

On your way home that nice Scrooge seemed content, but you could tell he was a little worried about something. 

“Missing Glomgold huh?” You asked with a laugh.

“Just a little apprehensive I guess,” Scrooge admitted. “Flinty disappeared without a trace. Sure he’s one of my main rivals, but I can still worry about him.”

“If he was here he would argue he’s your number one rival,” you laughed. “I’m sure he’ll turn up eventually. Even if he’s dead he’ll just come back like Duckworth. Except it’ll be to hinder instead of help. But also Glomgold seems to blow himself up every week so I highly doubt he’s dead. If he is I would hate to see what was able to take him down.”

“You’re probably right,” Scrooge sighed. “I’m sure he’ll show up and try to ruin everything.”

“I like Zan though,” you admitted. “She’s nice and she hasn’t kidnapped me.”

“The bar is set very low for you isn’t it?” Scrooge asked with a laugh. 

“Well, I’m dating you aren’t I?” You joked. “I’m lucky to be dating you. You’re quite a catch, Scrooge.”

“I know I am,” Scrooge boasted. You both shared a laugh. “I love you.” Scrooge cooed. 

“I love you too.” you replied. 

“Awwww,” you heard Launchpad say from the front seat. He was turned away from the road to look at you and Scrooge. The car swerved a bit. “Oh right I’m driving!” He exclaimed as he turned back to the road. 

You had really gotten used to Launchpad’s driving (and crashing). You thought about the first time he drove you home. You were terrified beyond belief. However, after jumping off the wing of a plane to a swarm of violent shadow creatures nothing seemed to scare you much anymore. Launchpad’s wild driving was actually a little fun now. 

You got back to the mansion late that night and went to Scrooge’s room. Really it was becoming your room as well. You slept next to Scrooge every night. You even had some of your clothes in the closet. Scrooge kept asking if you wanted to move all of your stuff in, but you didn’t want to completely invade his space. 

It was almost another month before you heard anything about Flintheart Glomgold. Webby ad Louie came to the mansion claiming to see him out on the docks claiming to be a fisherman named Duke Baloney. They wanted Scrooge to check what was going on. Scrooge was almost excited to see Glomgold. The whole way to the docks he had a grin on his face.

“Excited to see your sworn enemy, Scrooge?” You asked with a laugh. 

“Does it show?” He joked. “I just want to make sure Flinty is okay.” 

“Here’s the place!” Webby said. You stopped at a hole in the wall sort of place. It seemed like the area fisherman were known to hang out at. Scrooge stepped in first trying to make an entrance as alway. You stood with the kids just behind him. 

“I’m looking for Duke Baloney,” Scrooge stated. Everyone in the place looked to the man in question. He sure did look an awful lot like Flintheart Glomgold. 

“Remember Uncle Scrooge, you just need to figure out what’s wrong with Glomgold,” Webby reminded him. 

“I know. I’m not the one with amnesia,” Scrooge snapped then started to walk across the room to Duke. 

“I think someone is a little antsy,” you whispered to the kids. Scrooge sat at a table across from Duke and you watched him converse. 

“I wish we knew what they were saying,” Louie whined. 

“Me too,” you said. 

“Good thing I can read lips.” Webby smiled. “‘Foist me bagpipes! Hey was Webby totally right and you have amnesia?’ ‘She sure was.’ ‘Curse me kilts! That bright young lass is full of promise!’ ‘You said it. Boy, I wish she was my housekeeper’s granddaughter.’” Suddenly Scrooge and Duke both stood and seemed like they were sizing each other up. You took a step forward prepared to stop a fight. 

“Oh no!” Louie exclaimed. “They’re going to…” Scrooge and Duke wrapped each other in a quick hug. “...hug? What’s going on?” Scrooge walked back over to you. 

“So what was that?” You asked. 

“It’s Glomgold alright.” Scrooge explained. “And he does indeed have amnesia.”

“Ha! Told ya!” Webby said to Louie. “So, should we help him?” 

“No,” Scrooge said simply.

“Ha! I told you!” Louie cheered. “Because he’s still fundamentally a bad guy, right?” 

“No,” Scrooge said again.

“Can you explain?” You asked. 

“In all my years of volleying with that vexatious villain, I’ve never seen Flinty happier or more at peace,” Scrooge smiled. “Let him be Duke Baloney. It’s for his own good.”

“But he might have a brain injury.” Webby said with concern. 

“Flintheart Glomgold blows himself up on a daily basis. A simple brain injury is actually a step up.” Scrooge stated. “Let this one be, kids. I’m off to unveil my new charity with Zan Owlson, ‘Dimes for Ducklings.’ Hopefully I can talk her down to ‘Pennies for Pipsqueaks’ instead.” You rolled your eyes.

“Be careful guys!” You told the kids as you followed Scrooge out. 

“You really shouldn’t be so cheap when it comes to charity,” you told Scrooge. 

“I didn’t get to be the richest duck in the world-”

“By giving away your money and blah blah blah,” you cut him off. “Well, since I’m not the richest duck in the world, why don’t you just donate my pay to the charity? I mean I really don’t need it and I’m kind of not really working for you. I’m your significant other who sometimes takes pictures.” 

“That sounds like a good idea,” Scrooge stated. At that point Launchpad pulled up to take you and Scrooge to see Zan. You weren’t really allowed to sit in on this meeting. You planned to sit outside the office with Launchpad and wait. You did just that. Lucky for you Launchpad brought cards to help pass the time. After a few hands of go fish you both started building a house of cards. You managed to use all the card in the deck to make a decent structure. 

You pulled your phone out to take a picture of the structure next to Launchpad for size comparison. Suddenly Launchpad was shoved into the house of cards by none other than Flintheart Glomgold. You rushed to help Launchpad up and Glomgold stormed into Zan’s office shouting his own name.

“Oh boy Glomgold it back…” You said sarcastically. “You okay Launchpad?”

“I’m fine,” Launchpad answered in his usual chipperness. You both moved to the doorway of the office to see what was going on. 

“You thought you had me Scrooge, huh?” Glomgold questioned. “Pretending to be a boat in my dreams? Nice try!” 

“Goodbye Duke Baloney,” Scrooge said with a sigh. “Hello Flinty…” 

“Mr. Glomgold, I’m Zan Owlson,” Zan tried to introduce herself. “I’m currently the acting CEO on Glomgold Industries. It’s an honor to-”

“Save it Owl.” Glomgold barked as he ignore Zan’s outstretched arm. He blew right past her and straight to Scrooge. You were yet again prepared to stop a fight. “Scrooge was hoping everyone would forget Flintheart Glomgold. But I’m Unforgettable!” 

“You literally forgot yourself!” Scrooge snarked. “And you were happy.” 

“I’m only happy when you’re unhappy!” Glomgold yelled. 

“Should I call security? Or…” Zan asked as she shut the doors behind you to stop others from listening in.

“Just let them get it out,” you told her. 

“I will not be forgotten again!” Glomgold continued to scream in Scrooge’s face. Scrooge was unphased by it. “I propose a wager! You versus me.” Glomgold told Scrooge finally backing off of him some. “Whoever is the richest duck by the end of the year, wins.”

“Come on Flinty, why would I ever agree to some ridiculous wager?” Scrooge scoffed. 

“Oh, I can think of a reason.” Glomgold said as he pulled out a money clip. Scrooge looked more panicked than you ever saw him. 

“Where did you get that?” Scrooge gasped. 

“Oh this?” Glomgold smiled. “I’ve had it since I pilfered it from you as a wee child.” 

“That was you?!” Scrooge’s expression was much less panicked and much more furious at that point. He stood from his chair and walked to stare down Glomgold. 

“I beat you before and I can do it again.” Glomgold boasted. “Unless you’re afraid of being second best.” 

“I’ll never come in second to a vainglorious grifter like you!” Scrooge snarled. 

“Then prove it. Winner gets the loser’s company and becomes the richest duck in the world forever.” Glomgold smiled. 

“You’re on,” Scrooge agreed. You felt your heart drop. You really didn’t care who won and who lost. You loved Scrooge and wanted to be with him no matter what. However, you knew what Scrooge’s company meant to him. That money clip must have been something very important if Scrooge was willing to risk his entire company and his status as the richest duck in the world. 

Zan calmly walked around Scrooge and Glomgold as they shook each other’s hand with a death grip. “I’m just gonna go ahead and sign the charity paperwork for the both of you.” Zan stated. “Pleasure doing business…”

“Scrooge!” Webby yelled as she busted open the doors. “Glomgold’s back! He’s…”

“Already here.” Louie said following Webby in. “Feels like we missed something important…” 

“Damn right you missed something important…” You whispered under your breath. You and Launchpad took the kids outside the office for a moment. “So how did he come back?” You asked with a defeated sigh. 

“Louie and I were on a boat caught in the storm and we saw Duke jump in to save us,” Webby started. “When he got to us I reached out my hand to him and he grabbed it but then… he threw me into the water. I thought I was going to drown. Louie had to pull me back onto the boat.”

“He did what!?” You said enraged. You threw open the office doors once again. “You!” You said loud enough to make Scrooge and Glomgold both end their angry ranting and turn to you. “How dare you hurt my dau- er, my boyfriend’s housekeeper's granddaughter?” You practically launched yourself at Glomgold in full fury. Scrooge and Launchpad both had to hold you back. They had to drag you out of the room. “Better sleep with one eye open Glomgold!” You threatened. 

You and Scrooge were both angry for the entire ride home. You hated the thought of anyone hurting any of the kids. They had all grown on you so much. Glomgold wasn’t only Scrooge’s enemy now. He was yours as well. 

Once back at the mansion you had calmed down some. You sat in your room for a long time. Then there was a light knock. 

“(Y/n)?” You heard Webby from the other side of the door. “Can I come in?” You opened the door immediately and let Webby come inside. “About earlier… did you almost call me your daughter?” 

“Oh, that,” you laughed nervously. “Yeah sorry. I got swept up in the moment. If it had happened to Louie I probably would have called him my son by mistake. You kids just mean the world to me. You aren’t my kids, but you’re still my kids if that makes sense. If anything would have happened to you, I don’t know what I’d do.”

“I understand.” Webby said with a smile. “But I’m okay. It’ll take more than Flintheart Glomgold to take me down!” 

“Heck yeah!” You cheered. “You keep being awesome Webby.” 

Webby hugged you for a moment then told you, “you can call me your daughter if you really want to.” You felt tears in your eyes but managed to hold it in until after Webby left the room. 

“I have a daughter…” you said quietly. You had a smile on your face and tears in your eyes. “I have a daughter.”


	27. Discussions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is kind of a filler chapter I guess? I can't wait to write in the three caballeros. It might not be the next chapter, but it'll probably be the chapter after that.

“Why are you still awake?” Scrooge asked as you tried to crawl into bed undetected. 

“I could ask you the same thing,” you told him. “I guess Glomgold was able to get to both of us today.”

“I really thought you were going to fight him today,” Scrooge laughed. “Launchpad couldn’t even hold you back by himself.”

“Webby could have drowned because of him,” you said. You felt the anger coming back to you. 

“Oh yes, Webbigail. You almost called her your daughter,” Scrooge smiled. “The kids really grow on you huh? I cannae imagine my life without them now.”

“So what was the deal with that money clip today?” You asked changing the subject. 

“Uh, let’s not discuss this now,” Scrooge deflected. “It’s late. Let’s get some sleep.” You honestly couldn’t argue with him. You were tired. It had been a long and shocking day. Scrooge didn’t seem to want to talk about the money clip and you weren’t going to push it. 

You were exhausted, but you didn’t sleep. From what you could tell Scrooge didn’t sleep either. You both moved around a few times trying to get comfortable until you ended up facing each other. The sun began to rise soon after. It was time to get up and get going despite the fact you were tired.

“I know it’s been a while, but what did my dad say to you?” You asked suddenly. 

“Do you really want to know?” Scrooge asked.

“No… but I feel like I should.” You answered. 

“When you left the room your father brought up the topic of marriage. He said if I wanted your hand I would have to bribe him for his blessing. I thought he was joking at first, but he wasn’t,” Scrooge sighed. “I asked him if he had really come here for you. He laughed in my face and said ‘of course not.’ He came here because his child was dating his boss and he wanted a promotion.”

“Oh, is that all?” You laughed. “I thought it would be worse.” You were hurt, but it didn’t seem too bad. 

“It’s still awful,” Scrooge said. “He should have come here to see you like he said he did. You are an amazing person and your father should realize that.”

“Scrooge, it’s no big deal. He’s never really been part of my life anyways. I’m not missing anything without him.” You said. “Also, if you want to marry me you wouldn’t need his blessing either way. Just saying.” With that you hopped out of bed and went to your room to get dressed. 

When you stepped out of your room you ran into Mrs. Beakley. She said nothing more than “We need to talk,” then she led you to her room. You had never been in Mrs. Beakley’s room. You felt awkward being in her room. 

“Um, is this about me calling Webby my daughter?” You asked. 

“Partially.” She stated. “Please sit.” She gestured to one of the chairs off to the side. You sat without hesitation. “Webby told me that you almost fought Glomgold because of what he did to her. It took both Scrooge and Launchpad to drag you out of the room. Is that true?”

“Yes ma’am,” you said. You felt no need to explain further. 

“You really see Webby as a daughter?” She asked you.

“Honestly, yeah,” you smiled. “I’ve gotten really close to the kids especially Webby. I don’t think I’ll ever have kids of my own, so these kids are the closest I’ll ever come to being a parent. Obviously I’m not their parent, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be a strong role model for them.”

“What will happen if your relationship with Scrooge doesn’t last?” She asked. 

“The I’ll have to suck it up and stick around anyways.” You responded. “If that relationship fails it won’t change the fact that I’m part of this now. Even when Scrooge kicked us all out, I was there and I intend to stay with this family. It’s the only family I have.”

“That’s actually the other reason I wanted to talk to you,” Mrs. Beakley sighed. “I know Scrooge told you about what your father said.”

“That kind of literally just happened. How did you hear about it so fast?” You asked.

“When Scrooge is upset we all hear about it rather quickly,” Mrs. Beakley said. “The day that it happened I listened to Scrooge go on and on about it while I was preparing the dinner. Anyways, I want to make sure you’re okay. Scrooge told me you didn’t seem phased by it.”

“I’m really not,” you stated. “I knew my dad wasn’t really here for me. I had just announced I was dating Scrooge. I was more surprised that my dad was the only one to try anything. Before I had Scrooge and you and the kids and everyone, I did not know what a family was. I didn’t realize it was full of unconditional love and support. I never had that. I never expected that and I still don’t expect that from my dad.” You paused for a moment. “And I want to be better than my dad. That’s probably why I’ve fallen into this parental identity.”

“I can say for certain you are doing much better than your father.” Mrs. Beakley smiled. “ I don’t know about the boys, but I know Webby absolutely adores you.”

“Webby also adores Scrooge,” you laughed. “He isn’t exactly the best person in the world.”

“Yet you’re dating him.” Mrs. Beakley snarked.

“Yes and I happen to love the garbage fire that is his personality,” you joked. 

“You’ve been an excellent role model for the kids and even for Scrooge.” She said truthfully. “You are a wonderful person and an important asset to this family.” 

“Well that’s a boost to my ego,” you laughed. “Thanks Mrs. Beakley.” The look Mrs. Beakley gave you reminded you of the one Scrooge gave you the night of the money bin shark. That proud look that you felt like you needed. You stood and wrapped Mrs. Beakley in a quick hug. Then you left the room. 

You walked around the mansion looking for Scrooge. Somehow you got caught in the crossfire of a game the kids were playing and you ended up being shot by several foam darts. You took one of the toy guns and decided to join in. It was every man for themselves and it was obvious Webby was dominating the game. Eventually you noticed Scrooge go into his office. You snuck away from the kids and into Scrooge’s office. 

“It’s the end of the line babe,” you emoted as you held out the very obviously fake gun. “Say goodbye.” You shot the gun and hit Scrooge in the forehead.

“That was far too accurate a shot. If we ever do get married I need to make sure you sign a prenup,” Scrooge laughed. 

“Oh, so we’re talking marriage now?” You asked. 

“You brought it up first this morning.” Scrooge smiled. 

“I’d gladly sign a prenup for you Scroogie,” you said. Both of you let out a nervous laugh before Scrooge changed the subject. 

“I guess you were playing with the kids.” Scrooge said. 

“Yeah, I should probably keep the gun. If I gave it back to Webby the boys wouldn’t stand a chance,” you laughed. Suddenly the door to Scrooge’s office flew open and Donald rushed in. You couldn’t understand a thing he was saying. 

“No!” Scrooge hollered when Donald was finished. “We are not going all the way to Brazil just to see your old friends!”

“But Uncle Scrooge!” Donald begged. 

“If Scrooge doesn’t go I will,” you said. “I mean, I’ve stolen one of his cars and the boys stole the sub with Launchpad. Next is obviously the plane right?” you joked. 

“I’ve moved the keys,” Scrooge mentioned. 

“Launchpad has copies,” you smiled. “Come on Scrooge. Let Donald go see his friends. I think it would be fun. Plus how often do we get to go to Brazil?”

“We went last month,” Scrooge answered. 

“But this is for a festival!” Donald urged. “The Festival of the Flower!” 

“Oh come on Scrooge, it’ll be fun!” You insisted. You wanted to see the festival but mostly you were intrigued by Donald’s mention of his friends.

“Bah, fine,” Scrooge grumbled. “But I’m not paying for Panchito and Jose to get there. They have to find their own way.”

“Deal!” Donald said. He immediately took out his phone and left the room. 

“We’re going to Brazil!” You cheered. 

“You are a master manipulator,” Scrooge complained.

“No, you just have a soft spot for me,” you smiled. You kissed Scrooge on the cheek then made your way out of the room. Before leaving you shot another foam dart and hit Scrooge in the forehead again. Scrooge calmly stood up and took a toy gun out of a drawer in his desk. Then he chased you. Scrooge joined the game. Between him and Webby, you and the boys were losing.


	28. Nightmares

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Filler chapter? Filler chapter. I am tired and this isn't the best chapter, but I wanted to write more with Duckworth I guess. Next chapter will be with the Caballeros probably.

“Scrooge!” You yelled as you were thrown from sleep. Scrooge woke up upon hearing you scream. 

“Another nightmare?” Scrooge asked as he wrapped an arm around you. This was the fifth night in a row you had been having nightmares. None of them were the same, but they were all awful. They weren’t always about Scrooge. Sometimes they were about other family members. Each time you woke up screaming in a panic. 

“Y-you were in trouble and I couldn’t reach you-”

“Just breathe,” Scrooge said. “It was a dream. It wasn’t real.” You rested your head on Scrooge’s shoulder just to be close to him. He was there. He was safe. 

“Let’s just go back to sleep,” you whispered. You both laid back and you snuggled next to Scrooge. 

“I won’t let anything bad happen,” Scrooge whispered to you. “I promise.” 

You weren’t sure why you kept having these nightmares. You hadn’t gone on that many adventures and the next big thing coming up was the trip to Brazil. You really had nothing to worry about. Maybe it all the dangerous adventures were finally catching up with you. Maybe you were subconsciously worried about something. Maybe it was nothing at all. Just nightmares.

You didn’t sleep the rest of the night. You got up making sure not to disturb Scrooge and went to the kitchen. You drank six cups of coffee before Duckworth came in. 

“Have you been here all night?” Duckworth asked.

“Only since around three or so I can’t really remember,” you said as you took another sip of your coffee. 

“How much coffee have you had?”

“This is my seventh cup,” you told him. Duckworth took the cup from you. 

“That’s enough for you,” he said calmly. “You’re heart is beating so fast that I can feel it.”

“Well I’m glad someone can,” you yawned. “So how long have you been dead Duckworth?”

“Not long enough,” he mumbled. “A few years.”

“Was it scary to die?” You asked. 

“I don’t think I should answer that right now... Are you doing okay?” Duckworth said with major concern. 

“I’m fine. I’ve just been having these super realistic, terrifying nightmares,” you told him. “They’re kind of messing me up a little.”

“Nightmares huh? Wait here I’ll be right back,” Duckworth said. As soon as he left the room you took back your coffee cup and continued drinking. When he came back you pushed the cup away from you. “I’m cutting off your coffee supply,” he sighed. “Anyways use this.” Duckworth held up a dreamcatcher.

“This isn’t the evil one right? The one that shows you your worst nightmare.” You asked. 

“Of course not,” Duckworth stated. “Just hang it wherever you sleep and it should help keep nightmares at bay.” 

“Thank you so much, Duckworth.” you praised. “So, again, was it scary to die?”

“We can save that conversation for another day,” he said. “You should try to get some sleep.”

“I had seven cups of coffee. I don’t think sleep is a possibility right now unless it’s the eternal sleep.” You said.

“You are really focused on death when you’re tired aren’t you?” Duckworth asked rhetorically.

“Wait, do you sleep?” You asked.

“No I do not.” He answered. 

“So I kind of know the story of how you came back, but how did it happen on your end?” You asked. 

“I don’t really remember much between my death and coming back…” he explained. “But I heard a voice calling to me and then I came back. It felt like I woke up from a dreamless sleep. The voice was from the terrible illusionist the boys hired for Scrooge’s party… Scrooge told you no more parties, correct?” 

“Yeah we already had that discussion,” you mentioned.

“Good,” Duckworth continued. “I feel like there was something after my passing. I just can’t remember it.”

“I bet Scrooge was happy to see you,” you said.

“Oh yes, and I was happy to see him,” he smiled softly. “You know, in all my years of knowing Scrooge I’ve never seen him quite this content in a relationship. Of course he’s always had eyes for Goldie O’gilt, but he’s also fought her quite a bit.”

“Is this your way of saying you think our relationship is good?” you asked. 

“Yes,” Duckworth said with a slight chuckle.

“Well, thank you Duckworth,” you smiled. “It’s nice to know you think this is a good relationship. Everyone has been overwhelmingly positive about this.”

“We all want the best for each other and that includes Scrooge,” Duckworth said. “So far you have been the best for Scrooge.” You couldn’t help but smile. Duckworth was Scrooge’s most loyal servant, so loyal he’s literally been serving Scrooge while dead, and he approved of you. You really didn’t think you were anything special until that moment. 

Before Scrooge you had only dated a few people. Nothing ever lasted more than a month or so. You never really got the opportunity to know someone before things ended. Most of the time you weren’t the one ending things. You had often been criticized for being too busy to have a relationship and in the few times you did end things it was because your partner was cheating. You never really felt like you were special to anyone. 

It never really occurred to you how lonely you actually were before you met Scrooge. You didn’t have many friends and you didn’t have family. All you had was work and a tiny apartment. You couldn’t imagine ever going back to that. 

After your conversation with Duckworth he went onto his morning duties and you made your way back to Scrooge’s room. Scrooge was still asleep so you just slipped into bed next to him. You put an arm around him spooning him. You didn’t sleep, but you did rest. 

The next night you hung up Duckworth’s dreamcatcher and managed to sleep through the night. It was perfect timing too. You got two full nights of sleep before boarding the plane for Brazil.


	29. The Town Where Everyone Was Nice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a long wait time between updates. Work and school are kind of meshing together and I don't even know days anymore. But I'm on break for Thanksgiving now so bless.

Donald led the way through the jungle to the town for the Feast of the Flower. Along the way you managed to bump into a couple of tourists and help them find their way. You knew exactly when you got there why this town would be celebrating the flower; it was absolutely massive.

“Drosera Occidendum,” you said to yourself remembering the name of the monstrous flower towering above you. Normally Scrooge and/or Webby would give you a full lesson on whatever you were about to see, but this was different. Neither of them had heard of the Feast of the Flower before Donald brought it up.

“Oh boy!” Donald cheered. “I can’t wait to see my pals!”

“Sorry, who are these friends of yours?” Louie asked.

“And why haven’t we ever heard of them?” Huey added. “...And why did you all stop speaking? And-”

“Please, not everything is a dark family secret.” Louie cut him off.

“Kids, I’ve got a dark family secret,” Donald said. Huey gave Louie an I-told-you-so kind of look. “I… was one of the Three Caballeros.” Donald admitted.

The kids all mumbled as if they knew what Donald was talkin about, but they obviously had no idea. Really you didn’t know either. All you knew was Donald’s friends’ names were Panchito Pistoles and Jose Carioca.

“The Three Caballeros,” Scrooge scoffed. “Donald’s old college band. They practiced their polyphonic pandemonium in my garage for hours on end. The next time you complain about the bagpipes, just imagine trying to sleep while your uncle saws away at an accordion.”

“The accordion?” You laughed.

“I was so awesome.” Donald smiled reminiscently and he strapped on a fanny pack and whipped out some sunscreen.

“Awk, you’re fine as is,” Scrooge interjected. “A family man. A boat owner. You’re more impressive than those two warbling wastrels are.”

Suddenly you heard a plane overhead. You all looked up to see a bird jumping from the plane. As he gently floated down with the use of a parachute the bird began playing his umbrella like a musical instrument. Then the strumming of a guitar caught your attention. You looked to see another bird in a sarape and sambrero. He threw off the sarape and played his guitar with amazing skill. He jumped in front of the group as the other bird landed next to him.

“No offense, but they are much more impressive,” you gawked.

Donald practically ran to the other two and started dancing around to an elaborate secret handshake.

“Saludos amigos! Surely you remember old Panchito and Jose!” Panchito beamed as he talked to the kids.

“Os patinhos! Oh, last time we saw you, you were just little eggs!” Jose said. “Hey remember when you insisted you could juggle the eggs?” He said to Donald.

“And you dropped one!” Panchito added. All three laughed.

“These guys seem like a riot Scrooge,” you mentioned. “Why were you so against Donald seeing them?”

“Did you not just hear them say Donald dropped one of the boys as en egg?” Scrooge asked bitterly. “Now just who is paying for this little vacation?” Scrooge asked the boys.

“Ha Scrooge! The same old miser eh?” Jose laughed. “I’ve taken care of everyone’s stay! As a travel consultant and global tastemaker, I’m always being asked to sample the best places, the best food, the best everything! With all my jet setting, it will be nice to spend a night on solid ground.”

Panchito’s phone rang. “It’s my agent,” he sighed, “again. When you are an international pop sensation, you are but a slave to fame. ‘Panchito sign my baby.’ ‘Panchito, present at this award show, and also win most of the awards.’ It’s non-stop my friends! But this weekend the Three Caballeros ride again! Just like old times, eh, amigos?”

“Tell us everything embarrassing about Uncle Donald!” Dewey demanded.

“Embarrassing?” Jose laughed. “Your uncle was the cool one! Always off on globetrotting adventures.” You all looked over to Donald struggling with his fanny pack.

“What are you now? A superspy?” Panchito asked Donald. “A world famous DJ? Some insane combination of the two?”

“Surely, you are successful and impressive.” Jose added.

Donald looked at Jose and Panchito eagerly awaiting his answer and you noticed him start to panic. When he started hyperventilating you decided to intervene.

“Donald is under a lot of stress right now,” you excused. “We’ll be right back.” You and Huey took Donald off to the side and Scrooge followed.

“I’ve done nothing with my life!” Donald panicked as he rocked back and forth on a crate. “I’m a failure…”

“Aw, that never bothered you before.” Scrooge tried to console his nephew.

“Scrooge,” you snapped at him for being rude. “Donald is totally successful.”

“Absolutely!” Huey agreed. “Uncle Donald, you raised three boys and are rich in love! Isn’t that the true measure of success?”

“No!” Donald and Scrooge said in unison.

“Well, there’s an excellent lesson for the kid,” you sighed.

“Huey, you’ve got to help me,” Donald sighed.

“Well, I have been looking to earn my Improv Theatre merit badge,” Huey said. “How about you play the part of someone successful?”

“Just lie,” you added.

“Lie? Perfect!” Donald exclaimed.

“Nonsense! You do what you want, but I will not help you lie to impress that band of braggadocios.” Scrooge grumbled.

“If you blow our cover, Jose will probably get mad and you’ll have to pay for this trip yourself.” Huey mentioned.

“Donald, we have to lie to your friends, do y’hear?!” Scrooge said in a panic as he held Donald up by the collar. You pulled Scrooge off Donald causing Donald to land on the floor.

“Just keep it small and simple,” Huey said as he hugged his uncle.

“Great manipulation, Huey,” you mentioned while walking back to Jose and Panchito.

“I’m learning from the best,” he smiled. “So, Uncle Donald had uh, a very important business call!” Huey announced to Jose and Panchito.

“From McDuck Enterprises!” Donald added. “My company! I’m a billionaire!” You, Huey, and Scrooge all buried your faces in your hands out of frustration. What ever happened to small and simple Donald?

“The same Donald who searched our couch cushions for corn chips now owns McDuck Enterprises?” Panchito asked.

“Yes, he’s taking over the family business so Scrooge can retire.” Huey added.

“Cause he’s so old!” Donald exclaimed. You had to hold back a laugh. “Very, very old!”

“Because I’m so-” Scrooge began to rage but stopped when Huey silently reminded him what could be at stake if he doesn’t go along with it. “So old. So very, very old.” Scrooge slouched over and acted the part of the old man. “Oh Donald is that you?” Scrooge asked as he felt Donald’s face. Scrooge slapped Donald. “My eyes are as clouded as my mind!” Scrooge said before slapping Donald again.

“Ok that’s enough,” you said as you pulled Scrooge away from Donald.

“Taking care of his uncle’s legacy.” Jose said. “A man of great wealth and kindness.”

“So who are you?” Panchito asked you.

“Me? Oh I’m-”

“My personal assistant!” Donald stopped you.

“Yes, Donald’s assistant,” you sighed. “I’m (y/n). It’s very nice to meet the both of you. I’ve heard so much about you guys.”

Donald’s stomach growled. You suggested he go ahead to the restaurant with his friends while you “helped” Scrooge and rounded up the kids.

“I’m already regretting this,” you sighed to Scrooge and Huey.

“Just keep up the act,” Huey whispered. “Once we go back home everything will go back to normal.”

You sat between Huey and Louie at the restaurant and zoned out for a moment. You had a really bad feeling in the pit of your stomach. You didn’t even realize the food had arrived and you barely noticed when it was gone.

“(Y/n)?” You heard Panchito say. “Are you okay?”

“Hm? ...Oh yeah, I’m fine,” you said. “Just trying to mentally arrange Donald’s schedule for when he gets back to Duckburg.” You tried to keep the lie going. “He is a very busy Duck.”

When the check came Donald, Jose, and Panchito all whistled inconspicuously.

“OK, we cannot all whistle inconspicuously,” Jose stated.

“Let’s settle this like adults.” Panchito said calmly. “Donald should pay, because he’s the billionaire!”

“Right,” Donald chuckled nervously. You all awkwardly watched Donald and Scrooge stare each other down as their arms moved under the table. Huey crawled under the table to handle whatever was going on. Donald pulled up Scrooge’s wallet and left a pile of money on the table. “And a nice big tip too.” Donald said. Scrooge looked like he was about to blow a fuse.

“Come, come Uncle Scrooge.” Huey said trying to calm Scrooge. “Let’s get you some rest.” You and Huey led Scrooge out of the restaurant and everyone followed behind.

“Anyone else have a feeling something really bad is about to happen or is it just me?” You asked.

“It’s probably the feeling of Donald burning my money,” Scrooge grumbled.

“No, it’s definitely the feeling of impending doom, but I can brush it off.” You said as you took Scrooge’s hand. You followed Huey into a cafe to sit. You watched Donald and his friends from a distance. They were all beyond elated to be together once again.

“Look at how happy Uncle Donald is,” Huey beamed. “You can’t put a price on that smile.”

“That lunch cost me $351.47.” Scrooge grumbled.

“Oh just let him have this,” Huey said. “It’s only for one weekend.”

“Exactly,” you chimed in. “So for now, just relax and watch Donald blow through a few hundred.” you joked as you leaned against Scrooge. “Also, when we’re done here, never do the old man act again. It’s… weird to say the least.” You sat there with Scrooge for a long while. It was nice to have a moment with him.

“Has anyone seen Dewey, Louie, or Webby?” Huey asked.

“I’m pretty sure Webby is still lecturing Dewey and Louie on why they should live in the moment and not just take pictures,” you said.

“Shouldn’t you be taking pictures?” Scrooge asked. “You are still technically my employee.”

“Technically, from what we’ve told Panchito and Jose, I’m just Donald’s assistant,” you joked.

“They’re coming! Separate!” Huey said. You quickly moved from Scrooge and stood so you could offer your chair to Donald. The three guys sat down.

“Great news!” Donald cheered. “We’re getting the band back together!”

“What do you mean you’re getting the band back together?!” Huey asked.

“Oh people love a comeback!” Panchito explained. “Think of the headlines: ‘Panchito Reunites with Old Friends, Rockets to a Number Somehow Higher Than Number One!’”

“I’ll talk to some of my people,” Jose stated. “Perhaps we can play na Fiesta da flor!”

“Why stop with the festival? Donald, you can pay for a tour, right?” Panchito asked.

“Absolutely!” Donald cheered. Scrooge growled.

“Um, Donald, you’re forgetting you have an entire company to run,” you mentioned trying to pull him out of the fantasy.

“Ah phooey, the company can survive without me for a little while,” Donald said.

“No broken-down station wagons like the old days! Only top of the line!” Panchito beamed. “The Three Caballeros opening for Panchito Pistoles!” Donald and Jose kind of glared at Panchito. “...eh, we can work out who opens for who later.” Panchito and Jose left the table for a moment. Scrooge physically got on the table and jumped at Donald knocking him out of his chair.

“Hey, what’s the big idea?” Donald grumbled.

“Waste my money on a tour!” Scrooge growled as he wrestled Donald. “No-good spendthrift! And you owe me for lunch!” Huey whistled to get Donald and Scrooge to stop and you helped them both up.

“I think you’ve lost yourself in the role here.” Huey called Donald out. “Maybe it’s time to stop acting and tell the truth.”

“I think Huey’s right. This has gone on long enough,” you chimed in. “They’re your friends Donald. They’ll understand.”

“No way! I need this!” Donald argued. “I gotta go tune my instrument… and buy an instrument.” Donald ripped Scrooge’s wallet from his hands and ran away. You helped Scrooge to stand.

“Well, Donald has completely lost his mind,” you stated.

“I cannae wait to see this crash and burn,” Scrooge murmured. Moments later Donald returned with Panchito and Jose to warm up to they could practice once again. Donald was absolutely murdering his scales. Panchito and Jose even had to walk away for a moment.

“Okay this has to stop!” Huey demanded.

“No way! I’m a star.” Donald boasted.

“You want to stand out like your friends, I get it. But what’s going to happen when you have to pay for a plane?” Huey asked. “Or stadium? Or literally anything and you have no money!”

“Uncle Scrooge is rich. I’ll pay him back.” Donald said. He went to the bass he just bought and started tuning it.

“What was that, sonny?” Scrooge asked in his old man impression. “I’m just a doddering old man who can’t help you out of this mess that you’ve made.”

“Aw, phooey! I’m going out there if you like it or not!” Donald fumed. Suddenly you heard Dewey, Louie, and Webby screaming outside. You prepared yourself to sprint to their resuce, but they all ran inside.

“We have to get out of here now!” Louie yelled.

“The festival is a trap!” Webby explained. “The bloom- it’s a giant carnivorous plant!”

“You mean… we are the feast of the flower?” Huey asked.

“Oh!” Dewey exclaimed. “I just put that together. Clever!”

“But my band!” Donald complained.

“Band?” Louie asked. “Man, we do our own thing for, like, 15 minutes…”

“The fountain wasn’t a legend. It was a warning.” Webby stated. “We have to get out of here before the flower eats us all!” Webby showed a picture of the flower blooming. It was absolutely terrifying.

“I had a bad feeling, but of all the things that could go wrong on this trip, I did not expect this,” you said calmly.

“But the show must go on?” Donald tried to keep going.

“Are you willing to risk your life to look cool for your friends?”Huey asked.

“Ugh, ok! Go. I’ll get the guys.” Donald said. You all ran outside. The flower was far worse than the picture. You tried leaving the town but all the citizens were part of the plant. One of the vine people popped up right in front of you causing you to stop dead in your tracks.

“Have a great day!” The vine citizen said as it’s flesh opened up to show it’s actual form. You all screamed and ran in the opposite direction. A vine shot up and grabbed Webby. You ran to Webby as fast as your legs could carry you.

“Hold on Webby!” You yelled. Suddenly you felt something grip around your legs. It was one of the vines. It pulled your legs out from under you causing you to smack to the round before it lifted you up. Then it grabbed Louie and Dewey as well.

“Hang on! I’m coming-aah!” Scrooge called as he actually threw out his back. Scrooge and Huey each got wrapped in a vine as well.

“We’re dead…” you sighed. The pant ripped open the curtain to the cafe revealing the Caballeros. That’s all you could really see as you were being whipped around by the plant. Suddenly you heard Panchito strumming his guitar.

“ _We’re Three Caballeros_

_Yes Three Caballeros_

_They say we are birds of a feather_ ” Panchito sang as the band started beating the vines with ease.

“ _We’re happy amigos_

_No matter where he goes_

_The one, two, and three goes_

_We’re always together_

_We’re three happy chappies_

_With snappy sarapes_

_You’ll find us beneath our sombreros_ ”

The band started using their instruments as weapons against the plant. They managed to set you free and suddenly you were a fan of the Three Caballeros.

“ _We’re brave, and we’ll say so_

 _We’re bright as a peso_ ”

“ _Who says so_?” Donald and Jose began joining in with the singing.

“ _We say so!_

 _The Three Caballeros_ ” You heard a crack as Scrooge was whipped around by the plant.

“That’s better!” Scrooge exclaimed. “Now unhand me, ya walloping weed!” Scrooge cut the vine with his cane to set himself free. As the song continued there was a jarring note being held by Donald and it cause the plant to retract a bit.

“ _We have the stars to guide us_ ” Donald shrieked.

“Uncle Donald, your voice is terrible! Keep singing!” Huey called out.

“ _Guitars here beside us_ ” Donald continued.

“ _To play as we go_

 _We sing and we samba_ ”

“ _We shout ‘Ay, caramba’_ ” Jose and Panchito cringed at Donald’s singing.

“ _The Three Caballeros_ ”

As they sang the finishing note, the plant wilted and died. The two tourists you met in the jungle applauded.

“Aw thank you! We’ll be here all night!” Panchito said.

“No, we will not,” you stated. You all left in a rush. You didn’t fully relax until you were in the plane in the air.

“Oh man that was amazing!” Webby cheered. “I want to remember every single moment! Good thing I found this!” Webby pulled Dewey’s phone from her bag.

Dewey scrolled through the pictures on his phone and deleted them. “No pics so it didn’t happen!” Dewey stated.

“So wise.” Louie leaned in.

“I think that was better than Acapulco,” Jose smiled.

“See, when you’re true to yourself everything works out as it should.” Huey lectured.

“Things really did work out huh?” Panchito said. “Maybe we should get the band back together for real this time!”

“That is a great idea!” Donald agreed.

“Oh no… turbulence!” Scrooge shouted. “Curse these withered old limbs.” Scrooge grabbed Panchito’s guitar and smashed it. “I’m so sorry.”

“We’ll pay for that to be fixed… or a new one.” You said as you picked up the broken guitar. “Also, I’m not Donald’s assistant. I’m dating Scrooge. So if you ever really want to get the band together I might be able to pull some strings.”

“You’re dating the old miser?” Jose asked with a laugh.

“Yeah the old man thing was an act.” you cleared up. “I mean he is old, but he doesn’t act it. But yeah, if you want the band back together, I can try to convince Scrooge to produce.”

“The Three Caballeros ride again!” The guys said in unison.


	30. Cape Suzette

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just letting y'all know this chapter has a bit of GyPad in it. Like I kind of ship it but also I ship Fenton and Gyro but also I ship Fenton and Launchpad and all three together. I just really love those characters? Also I needed some filler lmao. I'm beyond stoked for the Christmas episode. I have some GREAT angst planned for when I write along with it. So I really wanted to get this chapter out before the episode aired so I could work on the next chapter as soon as I see the episode. Also let me know if y'all ship LP, Fenton, and/or Gyro because I might write a fic depending on what's popular. I usually only right xReader fics but something else could be fun! Anyways, let's get to the chapter!

The sound of thunder woke you up from a deep sleep. You were alone in your room. After what happened in Brazil, you wanted Scrooge to sleep alone to make sure his back was okay. It was lonely to be back in your room. You missed having Scrooge next to you. 

Another crack of thunder made you tense up. The storm was getting closer. You weren’t too fond of thunderstorms. You loved the rain, but thunder made you panicky. You weren’t afraid per se. You just didn’t like it. It was a bad night to be alone. 

You put on some headphones to drown out the noise of the thunder then you left your room. The thunder managed to shake the whole mansion. You could feel it under your feet, but that didn’t phase you. As long as you didn’t hear it you were okay. You carried on through the winding hallways. You weren’t really focused on a destination. You turned a corner and bumped into Scrooge.

“What are you doing up?” You asked him as you took off your headphones.

“I was going to see if you were okay,” Scrooge admitted. “I know you don’t like thunder. Come to my room for the night.”

“But-”

“I’m fine. I promise. Just come with me.” Scrooge took your hand and you both walked back to his room. Thunder shook the mansion once again and you tightened your grip on Scrooge’s hand. When you got to Scrooge’s room you both crawled in bed. Scrooge held you close making you feel safe and warm. The storm slowly passed and Scrooge stayed awake with you until it did. 

When you heard nothing more than the rain gently hitting the window you finally drifted back to sleep. You woke up kind of late and saw that Scrooge was already gone. This didn’t happen often. You usually woke up at the same time, but sometimes you slept in and Scrooge had to work.

You rolled out of bed and made your way to Scrooge’s office. You couldn’t even tell it had rained the night before when you looked outside. It was incredibly bright and sunny. When you reached Scrooge’s office you made sure to knock before entering. 

“Come in!” You heard Louie’s voice. You stepped inside and saw Louie putting down a radio and poster cards. “(Y/n)! Perfect! I know you’ll have my back on this!” Louie pulled you into the room and had you stand by Scrooge in his chair. Then Louie went back, grabbed his poster cards, and started the radio. 

“Introducing… Louie, Incorporated!” Louie began his presentation and held up the posters for a visual aspect. “It’s a business. It’s a dream. It’s a movement. Suits, ties, charts.” He said as he moved the posters to show men in suits and different charts. “Numbers, yachts,” he continued as he showed more of what he was saying. “You?” Louie asked. He pulled the last poster which was a cut out so you could see his face. “Louie, Incorporated! It’s a dream, business, movement.” The music ended along with his presentation. 

“Did you just do an internet search for the word ‘business’?” Scrooge asked. 

“That’s a trade secret,” Louie responded. 

“So is it… some kind of lemonade stand or…” Scrooge tried to clarify. Truth be told you had no idea what it was about either. 

“It’s a dream of tomorrow made manifest today.” Louie explained. 

“That explains literally nothing,” you stated. Scrooge pushed Louie’s pamphlet back to him. 

“Okay, so there’s some things I haven’t figured out yet,” Louie said. 

“Like what your business sales, does, and is,” Scrooge added. 

“Sure, yeah, but… this business is everything to me,” Louie sighed. “I want to be a successful businessman like you, ‘cause you’re, like, my idol and… possibly angel investor?” Louie held up a picture he drew of Scrooge handing him money in the style of the painting “The Creation of Adam.”

“Oh no that’s adorable,” you whispered to yourself. You took it when Louie set it down and took a picture of it to make as your phone background. 

“You cannae just set out to make money.” Scrooge continued. “You have to find a problem and offer a solution.”

“My problem is, I need money,” Louie said as he took the drawing he made back from you. “And if you would just give it to me already, problem solution.”

“Louie, Louie, Louie,” Scrooge sighed. “Look at your Uncle Donald.” You all moved to the window for a moment. “He saw there was a housing shortage in Duckburg, so he’s renting out the spare bedroom in his houseboat. Problem, solution. He’s helping people and- Is he stealing my chandelier? Oi!” Donald looked up when Scrooge called out. Donald smiled and continued lugging the chandelier to his house boat. 

“But it takes money to make money, right?” Louie asked. “I just need a tiny little bit, and I’ll get out of your hair.”

“Alright, lad. How much do you need?” Scrooge asked as he reached into a coin purse. 

“2.5 billion, please.” Louie said as Scrooge handed him a quarter. Scrooge tried to hold back his laughter, but ultimately failed. He threw himself back in his chair laughing. 

Louie pouted as he took the quarter and left the room. You followed him out and made sure Scrooge was still distracted with his own laughing. 

“Hey, Louie,” you said quietly to stop him. You reached into your wallet and pulled out twenty five dollars. “It isn’t 2.5 billion, but it’s what I can invest into your company. You’re going to do great things.” Louie to the money from you with a slight smile and a thank you. Then you went back into Scrooge’s office. He was just calming down from laughing. 

“Can you believe that?” Scrooge asked with a slight laugh. “What would a child need with 2.5 billion dollars?” 

“On another note,” you said, “you’re okay with Donald having some stranger rent out one of his rooms when his house boat is on your property and you have to go through the mansion to get to the boat?” Scrooge stopped his laughing entirely. 

“I did not think about that…” he admitted. You both turned to the house boat waiting for whoever was going to stay there to arrive. A muscular stork soon emerged from the mansion carrying a ridiculous amount of boxes at once. “Oh, it’s just Storkules.” Scrooge said calmly as he sat back in his chair.

“Storkules?” You asked. “As in demigod son of Zeus, Storkules?”

“I’ve told you about Ithaquack haven’t I?” 

“Well, yeah, but hearing about you knowing gods and seeing those gods in real life are two different things, Scrooge.”

“He’s only a demigod,” Scrooge stated. “You can go meet him if you’d like.” You looked out the window to see Storkules throw Donald up in the air. It took a while before Donald came back down. 

“No… I’m good…” you said. 

“Well then, how would you like to accompany me to Cape Suzette? Louie gave me a brilliant idea for a business venture. I need to make a couple of phone calls to set things up, but we can be gone by this evening.”

“Sounds fun. I’ll pack our bags,” you said without hesitation. Going to Cape Suzette with just Scrooge sounded like the perfect opportunity to have some alone time. Plus the holidays were approaching. You could get a lot of gift shopping done in Cape Suzette while Scrooge was doing his business thing. You went directly to Scrooge room and started packing for the trip. You let Mrs. Beakley know that you and Scrooge would be leaving so that you wouldn’t just be missing. 

It wasn’t long before Scrooge finished up in his office and you set out. Launchpad flew you to Cape Suzette then went back to Duckburg for the time being. It wasn’t a very long flight between the two. You and Scrooge spent the night at a luxurious hotel overlooking the water. A sudden sick feeling hit you. You remembered that this was where Donald and the boys were going to move before the Shadow War. 

You tried not to think about what would have happened if they had moved, but it was something that was stuck in your mind. You probably would have never seen the boys again. As much as you didn’t want to believe it you knew the family would have completely fallen apart. 

If Donald had taken the boys to live in Cape Suzette and had Magica not sought her revenge, you’d be back in your crappy apartment with your crappy job. You would have tried to go back to the mansion just to see Webby, Mrs. Beakley, and Duckworth. However, you knew you wouldn’t be able to keep it up. You probably would have stayed friends with Launchpad at least, but that would be your only tie left. 

“Are you okay?” Scrooge asked. “You’ve been staring out the window for a long time.” 

“I’m fine,” you said shaking it off. “Just lost in thought… You have a long day tomorrow. We should get to bed.”

“I guess you’re right,” Scrooge said. You turned off the lights and both of you crawled into bed. “I love you,” Scrooge said quietly. 

“I love you too,” you whispered back. You kissed him good night. 

You woke up to Scrooge opening the curtains to the balcony to let the sun light in. You were able to sit and enjoy a cup of coffee with him before you both had to get ready. It was nice to have a quiet morning together.

“So what’s this business venture Louie made you think of?” You asked.

“Lemonade.” Scrooge smiled.

“Lemonade?”

“Yes, Lemonade.”

“That’s it?”

“What do you mean ‘that’s it’?”

“Nothing,” you laughed. “I just didn’t expect that to be why you came all the way to Cape Suzette.”

“Well it’s not the only thing. I thought it would be a good chance for us to go out. Let’s meet back here around six. Sound good?”

“Perfect,” you smiled. You gave Scrooge a quick kiss. “Now you need to get ready.”

“I guess you’re right,” Scrooge sighed. He finished his coffee and got up to get ready. Meanwhile you stayed where you were finishing your coffee in peace. When Scrooge was ready to leave you walked him to the door. 

“I’ll see you this evening,” you smiled. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Scrooge said. He kissed you quickly before leaving. You watched him turn the corner before you closed the door. Then it was your turn to get ready and be productive. You took a quick shower and got dressed before heading out. You hailed a cab and had it drop you at the mall. 

In no time you managed to get gifts for all the kids. You were over excited for the holidays to come. You never got to celebrate Christmas or anything growing up. Christmas was often spent in a bus, cab, or plane going to the house of whoever would take care of you next. When you worked at the diner the most you got was a ten dollar holiday bonus in a blank card. This year you could go all out for Christmas.

You had a huge family and kids to shop for. This would be your first real Christmas. You knew Scrooge wasn’t a real big fan of the holiday, but if he ruined it for you he would severely regret it. You spent quite some time in the mall and managed to get gifts for everyone. You took everything back to the hotel room and laid on the bed. There were still a few hours before Scrooge would be back. You scrolled through social media for a while until you ultimately fell asleep. 

You weren’t asleep long. Your phone rang causing you to wake up. It was Scrooge.

“Hello?” You answered the phone still a little groggy. 

“Hello, love,” Scrooge said. “There’s a change of plans. I may be a little late getting back.”

“Oh, that’s okay. How late?”

“Uh, very…”

“Oh… well that’s fine. I’ll just wait here. Call me when you’re on your way back.”

“I will. I love you.”

“I love you too. See you tonight.” 

With that you hung up the phone. You got up from the bed and walked out on the balcony. You didn’t really know what to do. You didn’t know Cape Suzette well enough to just go out and wander. You could have gone to the beach, but it was getting cold outside plus it would be night soon. 

You watched the sunset from the balcony and stayed outside until you couldn’t take the cold. You went back inside and shut the sliding door and closed the curtains. You turned on a lamp and the television. You really had nothing else to do other than watch TV and relax. After a while you ordered room service and ate. 

Time ticked by ever so slowly. It was eleven before Scrooge called you to let you know he was on his way. You made sure his pajamas and such were ready so he could got to bed and be well rested for tomorrow. The second he stepped through the door you pulled him into a deep, passionate kiss. You felt like you couldn’t control yourself. You just wanted to be close to him and stay close to him.

“I may have been tired before, but I’m wide awake now,” Scrooge joked when you separated. You both got ready for bed then laid next to each other. Scrooge held you close to him and you took the opportunity to pull him into another passionate kiss. Neither of you moved away for a long time. 

When you did finally separate Scrooge whispered,” I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Scroogie,” you whispered back. You fell asleep in Scrooge’s arms and slept soundly all night. 

No matter how many times you told Scrooge you love him it always felt new. It felt exciting. It felt right. And hearing it from Scrooge always made you feel amazing. You really did love him. 

The next day you were on your own again. Scrooge was trying to fix whatever lemonade related problem he had and you were alone. It got to the point that you actually called Launchpad to see if he wanted to fly to Cape Suzette to hang out. Of course he obliged. You took a cab to the airport to meet Launchpad. To your surprise he also brought Gyro with him. 

“We would have brought Fenton too, but he’s a little busy,” Launchpad explained. Fenton was Gizmoduck after all. He was hired to protect Duckburg. 

“So what are we doing here?” Gyro asked. 

“Just hanging out,” you smiled. 

“You’re lonely without Scrooge aren’t you?” Gyro sighed. 

“Yes.”

“How did you manage to live before Scrooge?”

“I was an empty husk of a duck back then,” you stated. “Anyways, let’s go do something.”

You let LP decide where to go and he chose the beach. It was too cold to swim so you and LP looked for cool shells and made a sand castle. Gyro sat a bit away from you guys and wrote what looked like blueprints in the sand. He took a picture of it with his phone just in time for the tide to come in and erase it. 

After the beach, you all went to eat. At some point Launchpad made a joke and you actually saw Gyro laugh a little. It was strange. Usually when LP made a joke Gyro would sigh or groan. When the check came they both reached for it. When their hands touched Gyro laughed nervously before pulling his back. Obviously you ended up grabbing the check to actually pay it.

After eating, you went back to the hotel. Instead of having Launchpad and Gyro go all the way home just to come back the next day for you and Scrooge, you got them a room for the night. In order to keep the gifts in your room a secret you just hung out in their room. 

“So…” you began when Launchpad left the room for ice. “You laughed at Launchpad’s joke at the restaurant.”

“Your point?” Gyro asked. 

“You also whipped your hand away from his really fast.”

“I just didn’t want to pay the bill. What are you suggesting?”

“I’m not suggesting anything, Dr. Gearloose. I’m stating there’s something going on with you about him. You have a total soft spot for him.”

“I do not!”

“Hey man I won’t judge you if you do. LP is a really good guy. He’s probably the nicest person I have ever met in my entire life.”

“Are you sure you’re not the one with a crush on him?” Gyro asked. He looked as if he immediately regretted what he said. 

“I knew something was up!”

“Keep it down!” Gyro shushed you. “Look I don’t know if I have a crush on him exactly. I’m still figuring out… things.”

“Oh, well that’s fine. Even if you do like him it isn’t a bad thing. I’m pretty sure everyone likes Launchpad in one way or another… Speaking of LP he should have been back by now…”

“He probably got lost in the hallway.”

“Well, I’m going to head out to my room. I’ll find Launchpad and bring him back here.” You told him. You left the room and immediately bumped into Launchpad.

“Oh that’s right! Room 2302!” LP smiled. You made sure he got inside before leaving for your room. 

When you got back to your room your phone went off. You got a notification that there was a new episode of Dewey Dew-night posted. You immediately clicked to watch it. Dewey Dew-night was surprisingly entertaining. Dewey really had the charisma of a showman. This episode had Webby, Huey, Louie, and Storkules as guests. As it turned out Louie, Incorporated found its problem in the harpies that followed Storkules to Duckburg. His solution was to catch them for a fee. From the looks of it the company was pretty much a success. You were proud and also happy that you invested in Louie, Incorporated. 

Scrooge didn’t get home until late again and he seemed discouraged. His lemonade business venture was failing before it started. You listened to him pour out his frustrations for a good long time. You could tell he was feeling better by the end of it. 

“Oh well, it was only one failed idea, it happens,” Scrooge sighed. “I’m more upset that you and I haven’t seen each other much the last couple of days.”

“Well, we have each other now,” you smiled. “We’re going home tomorrow, so we have tonight.”

“I like the sound of that,” Scrooge grinned. “So where do you see this relationship going?”

“Wow, straight forward,” you laughed. “I see the relationship going far. We haven’t been together long, but I can’t imagine a future without you.”

“So marriage is definitely on the table?” 

“Are you planning to purpose?” 

“Maybe someday. Not for a while of course. It’s way too early for that.”

“I absolutely agree. So does the age difference bother you at all?”

“Not as much as it bothers you obviously,” Scrooge laughed. 

“It doesn’t bother me. It’s a little weird, yes, but I love you and that’s that. Besides it would be weird for you to date just about anyone. Except Goldie, but please don’t leave me for Goldie.”

“I would never,” Scrooge smiled and leaned in for a quick kiss. 

“I never imagined my life like this, but thank goodness this is how it ended up,” you smiled. 

You and Scrooge chatted a while until you were both yawning and struggling to stay up. You crawled in bed and Scrooge joined you. He ran his fingers through your hair and gave you a look that made you feel safe. 

“I’m glad I went to that dingy diner despite my better judgement,” Scrooge admitted. “I could have never guessed I’d meet someone as incredible as you.”

“So when did you start feeling something for me?” You asked. 

“That night at the bin. I didn’t fully realize what it was, but I couldn’t seem to get you off my mind.”

“I’m glad I decided to go then.” You continued to talk until you fell asleep. You didn’t even remember falling asleep. Between Scrooge playing with your hair and his words of love you were a goner. You were happy to at least have that night alone with him, but you were even happier to be going home. You missed the kids as well as the others. You couldn’t wait to see them. 

The ride home felt longer than it was. You were just ready to be back at the mansion. Launchpad dropped you and Scrooge off before taking Gyro home. “Have fun,” you teased Gyro before they left. 

“Where were you?” Louie asked as you and Scrooge went to the out to the pool area. You stood a little too close to the harpies and Scrooge pulled you away as one snapped at you. 

“Had a business opportunity in Cape Suzette.” Scrooge explained. “So you lost it all did ya?”

“Yep. Big time.” Louie said defeated. “Oh, here’s your investment back.” He handed Scrooge a quarter. “(Y/n), it might take me awhile to get your investment back.”

“Eh, don’t worry about it, kid.” You smiled. “Louie, Incorporated will be up and running successfully one day. You can get the money to me then.”

“And here, you can keep this as payment for that new idea you gave me,” Scrooge gave Louie the quarter back and pulled a can of lemonade out of his pocket. 

“You opened a lemonade business?” Louie asked. He opened the can and drank. 

“Enjoy that because it’s probably the only can,” you stated. 

“We couldn’t figure out a cost-effective way to transport the lemons from Cape Suzette to the juicery in town.”

A harpy snapped at Louie and he tossed the empty can of lemonade on reflex. The harpies fought over the can until Webby came out and lept over the harpies taking the can. 

“No! Heel! Sit!” Webby commanded. The harpies listened to her and obeyed. She walked back and stood between you and Louie. 

“Huh, no one ever asked what they love most.” Louie said. He thought for a moment. Then suddenly Webby punched him causing him to flew to the side. 

“Yikes, I’m guessing you asked what they love most,” you said to Webby as Scrooge helped Louie up. 

“Yes I did. I also managed to train them when no one else thought it was a good idea,” Webby grumbled. 

“Sounds right,” you sighed. 

A few days later, after planning and another short trip to Cape Suzette, Louie and Scrooge managed to get McDuck Lemonade up and running with the help of the harpies. You were only excited because they had a news story lined up with Roxanne Featherly meaning you’d get to see Roxanne again. 

“Looks like Scrooge McDuck is turning lemons into lemonade,” Roxanne said as she began her newscast. “Mr. McDuck’s new Fair Trade Lemonade is 100% organic and sustainable, from the farm-fresh lemons shipped in from Cape Suzette to the rehabilitated harpies that deliver and squeeze them.” Roxanne held out a glass and a harpy squeezed lemon juice into it. 

“That’s right Roxanne.” Scrooge emoted. You noticed Webby run in the background throwing a lemon to a harpy. “No shipping costs, no fuel emissions.” 

“And we pay them in the thing they love most: delicious McDuck Brand Lemonade.” Louie added. He tossed a can of lemonade to a harpy in the back. “Because as CDO, Chief Delivery Officer-”

“Unpaid intern,” Scrooge corrected.

“Not now,” Louie whispered. “I believe in turning problems into solutions.”

“But how do you keep the harpies from stealing all your lemonade?” Roxanne asked. At that moment a harpy dive bombed the three for Roxanne’s cup of lemon juice. The three leapt out of the way and the harpy hit the camera. 

“We are still working on that particular problem.” Louie finished. 

When the newscast wrapped up you and Roxanne got to talk for a few minutes. She asked how your relationship was going and you asked how hers was. It was nice to catch up. You kind of wanted to be better friends with Roxanne, but you also knew that was dangerous territory. You knew that if she needed a story, she’d use one of yours. So you decided it was best to just stay threatening acquaintances.


	31. Your First Christmas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was going to be 2 shorter chapters but nah. Most of the angst is in the beginning and I kinda like it. Also... I have no idea how to write kissing scenes with ducks. It's awkward lmao. But I managed. Enjoy.

Christmas was fast approaching and you could hardly contain your excitement. This would be your first real Christmas and you were able to spend it with the people you loved. As the days counted down, you could see the kids get excited as well. Mrs. Beakley and Duckworth were definitely getting in the swing of things as well. You helped Mrs. Beakley with baking plenty of times and you heard Duckworth humming Christmas songs as he worked. 

Out of everyone, Donald seemed most excited. You could tell Christmas was his holiday. You helped him buy some decorations for the yard, and you both agreed to wait until Christmas Eve to put them up so you wouldn’t have to hear Scrooge complain about them every day. Everything was coming along so well, except for Scrooge.

As Christmas inched near, Scrooge seemed to get more and more irritable. It almost got to the point that you didn’t want to be around him for the time being. It was just constant negativity. You tried lightening the mood and making him forget it was Christmas time, but he didn’t budge from his intense anger towards the holiday. He never even gave a clear reason as to why he hated Christmas. You knew he hated Santa Claus, but that was it. 

When the first snow fell you and Donald went outside with the kids. You practically begged Scrooge to come out with you but he refused. Mrs. Beakley told you not to take it personally. She said Scrooge just got this way this time of year and when Christmas passed he would be back to normal. 

In the week before Christmas you felt mixed emotions. You were elated to finally celebrate the holiday, but at the same time you felt so distanced from Scrooge. It hurt so much. 

The day before Christmas Eve you kind of avoided Scrooge. You threw yourself into helping Mrs. Beakley and Duckworth prepare the house. You started putting up decorations and even helped pick out the Christmas tree that would be decorated the next day. It was fun. 

As night fell you found yourself walking around the mansion. You felt empty. All the excitement started to leave you and you didn’t want it to. You wandered aimlessly as the hours ticked by. At some point you stopped and gazed at the stars through a window. You felt like crying, but you didn’t really understand why. 

“Please just let it be a good Christmas,” you whispered to yourself. 

“(Y/n)?” You turned to see Scrooge coming down the hallway. “What are you doing up?” he asked. 

“Nothing,” you said with a little more hostility than you intended. Scrooge tried to take your hand but you pulled it away. 

“You should get to bed,” Scrooge told you. 

“So should you,” you snapped. You were angrier at him than you originally thought. 

“Are you okay?” Scrooge had the audacity to ask. 

“Yeah, I’m totally fine,” you said sarcastically. 

“It doesn’t seem like it.”

“You really don’t get it do you?” You fumed. Scrooge took a step back. “I have never been able to celebrate Christmas. I was so excited to finally have a family to be with for the holiday. Now we’re two hours into Christmas Eve and all I feel is an empty sadness because you couldn’t even be bothered to show anything other than an absolute hatred for the holiday! You couldn’t even just go have fun in the snow with your family! You’ve barely even talked to me in the last two weeks! ‘Are you okay?’ Of course I’m not okay!” You didn’t realize how angry you actually were. The fact you were tired probably had something to do with it too, but you were furious. “If you ruin Christmas Day for me there will be hell to pay McDuck. That isn’t a threat. It’s a promise.” 

You didn’t bother letting Scrooge say anything. You walked away. You didn’t even realize the tears in your eyes when you were yelling at Scrooge. You got to your room and cried You cried because you just yelled at the man you loved. You cried because you were so frustrated with him. You cried because you were exhausted. Most importantly, you cried because you expected Christmas to be ruined for you. You wanted this Christmas to be perfect, but you knew better. 

In the morning you were still upset, but you also felt a lot better than you did the night before. You got dressed and went downstairs to help Donald pull out all of his yard decorations. You started putting them up then got pulled inside for a bit to help Mrs. Beakley in the kitchen. 

“I heard your little kerfuffle with Scrooge last night,” Mrs. Beakley mentioned as she rolled out pie crust. You stopped mixing whatever you were mixing.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure everyone heard it…” you sighed. “I was just frustrated. I lost my cool for a minute, but I’m good now.”

“Has Scrooge tried to talk to you today?”

“No, and I don’t really want him to. I feel like I’ll just blow up again. I just wish he could pretend to be happier. Just because he hates Christmas doesn’t mean he has to ruin it for everyone else… Well for me. You guys don’t seem too phased about it.”

“Dear, we’ve all had plenty of Christmases. We know how stressful and frustrating this holiday can be. You’re still new to it. Not to mention your first real Christmas is with the man who hates the holiday the most. You’ll learn to handle it. For now, why don’t you go see what the kids are doing? I can finish things up in here. Thank you for your help.”

You checked on Donald before going to see the kids. He was wrestling with a string of lights so you helped him get untangled before heading upstairs. The kids were in the boys’ room talking about their excitement for the next day. You only checked in for a moment then you headed back outside to make sure Donald hadn’t electrocuted himself or anything. 

You walked down the hall and noticed Scrooge. You didn’t make eye contact with him. You kept your head straight and just kept walking. You wanted to talk to him but he didn’t look any happier than he had been. So you avoided him. 

You went to the foyer and found Duckworth. You asked him if there were any Christmas decorations you could go through and he took you to the attic. You immediately grabbed a big dancing Santa Claus statue and Duckworth helped you bring it down. You specifically put it in a spot Scrooge would have to pass on the way to his room that evening. You were feeling petty. 

When the sun began to set you helped Duckworth bring out decorations for the tree. Huey, Louie, and Webby came downstairs to start on the tree. They said Dewey would rather stay in the room and you understood. Not everyone could get into the holiday spirit. At least Dewey wasn’t trying to make it everyone else’s problem. Louie started working on his letter to Santa while Huey tried to instruct Webby on the optimal way to decorate the tree. 

You heard Scrooge yelling at Donald from the front door then there was a big crash sound. You knew that was the sign that Launchpad had arrived. Webby finished the tree by swinging around it to add the tinsel. 

“Tinsel! Holly! Novelty ornaments!” Webby cheered. Only the bottom half of the tree was decorated. “Pure Christmas magic.” Webby landed between you and Huey. Huey looked at his Junior Woodchuck Guidebook for a moment. 

“I have some notes on your ornament distribution,” Huey stated. 

“Magic!” Webby beamed. You handed Duckworth the star to be placed at the top of the tree and Scrooge pushed by you and the kids. 

“Dear Santa… Look, I can explain,” Louie began his letter. Scrooge walked by and took the paper from Louie, crumpled it, then threw it back. “Hey!” Louie reacted. 

As Scrooge ascended the stairs Mrs. Beakley stopped him. “Christmas Eve dinner will be served promptly at 8:15, followed by the annual screening of Christmas on Bear Mountain at 9:08.” Beakley explained. “And I’ve reset the cryptid traps. Don’t want another pesky sugar plum fairy infestation this year.” 

There was a loud snap and Scrooge cried out in pain. He stepped in one of the cryptid traps. 

“Bah! Crass commercialism, empty sentiment and all the trappings of the holiday!” Scrooge yelled out from the second floor overlooking the foyer. “And the endless monuments to that reindeer-rustling red-suited rep-” Scrooge hit the Santa Claus you put out and turned to see it. He was seething with anger. “Who put this up?” He growled. 

Huey and Webby pointed to Louie. Louie pointed to Huey. You pointed to yourself with a slight smirk. Duckworth didn’t point at you until he noticed you were already selling yourself out. You wanted Scrooge to know you put Santa there just to spite him. Donald walked in for a second then walked right back out. He made a good call. Scrooge turned to the Santa statue and started ripping it apart. He stopped and looked directly at you for just a split second. 

“Bah, humbug.” Scrooge fumed. 

“He said it!” Webby gasped with excitement. 

“I’m going to bed!” Scrooge yelled before slamming his door shut. Donald came back inside and brought Launchpad with him. You felt hands on both your shoulders. Duckworth and Mrs. Beakley were standing by you. You took a deep breath and gave them both a reassuring look. 

“I’ll be right back,” you said. You went outside for a moment to collect yourself. You started walking in the snow to go around the mansion. You caught a light on the second floor out of the corner of your eye, but when you looked up there was nothing there. You leaned against the mansion and sunk down to sit. The cold snow didn’t bother you at all. 

Part of you wanted to run back inside, bust Scrooge’s door down, and drag him out to have a good time. Another part of you wanted to leave the mansion grounds and get lost in the city for a while. You just sat in the snow looking up at the moon. 

“Give me a sign,” you whispered hoarsely. You buried your face in your hands. Then you felt something drop on your head and bounce off into the snow. You looked up and saw a flash of green light. Scrooge’s window was open. You looked in the snow beside you and saw Scrooge’s wallet. You picked it up and looked up again. “Scrooge?” you called out. There was no answer. 

You pulled your knees to your chest and put your head down. The cold air began to get at you, but you still didn’t want to go inside yet. At this point you realized you were ruining your own Christmas Eve. The family was inside probably enjoying some Christmas carols before dinner. You could have joined them. You wanted to join them. Instead you were sitting out in the cold moping because your boyfriend was angry about Christmas. 

“You know you’re going to catch your death out here,” you heard Scrooge say. You looked up to see him standing in front of you. He offered a hand to help you up and you took it. He pulled you into a tight hug. You refused to let him go both because you were freezing and because you just really wanted to hug him. “I’m sorry for the last few weeks. I should have made your first Christmas better.”

“It’s not too late,” you said. “It’s still Christmas Eve.”

“Let’s get you inside so you can warm up,” Scrooge said. He helped you inside and you saw three new additions to the party. 

“How long was I outside?” you asked. 

“Oh that’s right you stayed in the same time,” Scrooge said. “Those three are the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. I party with them every Christmas Eve as a way of escaping once a year. I’ve been in the past for the last thirty minutes or so. Really it was only five minutes for you.”

“What?”

“I’ll explain it to you more later,” Scrooge smiled. “Now, we have Christmas carols to sing!” Scrooge took your hand and pulled you with him to stand by the piano. Launchpad played Deck the Halls while Huey, Louie, and Webby played with a bear trap. Dewey ran into his uncle’s arms for a hug. 

“Welcome back,” Donald told Dewey. Dewey was confused but the other kids tackled him before he could question Donald. 

You all stood together as Launchpad began to play a different rendition of the Twelve Days of Christmas. You all eventually joined in. After a few carols you all moved into the dining room. You helped Mrs. Beakley bring out all the food then took your spot next to Scrooge.

“Scrooge is this your new fling?” Present asked. “What about Goldie?”

“Oh, uh,” Scrooge laughed nervously, “Shut it Present.” 

You let it slide. It was Christmas after all. Everyone ate then gathered in a sitting room for the annual screening of Christmas on Bear Mountain. The kids sat on the floor with Donald and Launchpad. Mrs. Beakley sat close to Future and Past sat on Present’s shoulder. Scrooge let Duckworth take his chair so that he could sneak away with you for a moment. You both escaped into the foyer and sat near the fireplace. Scrooge told you about what happened on his adventure in the past and what happened on Dewey’s adventure to the past. 

“I truly am sorry that I made you so upset,” Scrooge apologized. “I should have made the weeks leading up to your first real Christmas a little more enjoyable.”

“I’m sorry for blowing up at you last night,” you sighed. “It just hurt a lot to have you distance yourself so much. You weren’t even talking to me.”

“You had every right to be upset with me,” Scrooge admitted. “I’m so sorry.”

“Oh, I just remembered,” you pulled Scrooge’s wallet out of your pocket. “You dropped this when you took off for the past.” He took it back and put it in his pocket. 

“Thank you, I thought I lost it in the past,” Scrooge laughed. “I’m very lucky to have you. I love you, (y/n).”

“I love you too, Scrooge.” You smiled. Scrooge took his top hat off revealing the mistletoe headband he was wearing. He smirked thinking he was clever. Jokes on him, you would have kissed him either way. 

You snuck back into the sitting room in time for the movie to end. The kids were sent to be and the Ghosts of Past, Present, and Future left to do whatever ghosts do. You helped Mrs. Beakley and Duckworth clean up while Scrooge walked Launchpad to a guest room. You said goodnight and Merry Christmas to all before joining Scrooge in his office. He sat in his chair and you sat on his desk.

“So the whole hating Christmas thing was more or less and act right?” You asked. Scrooge nodded. “So then do you really hate Santa Claus too.”

“Absolutely, that reckless red-suited reject is not to be trusted,” Scrooge growled. 

“Okay that part still stands then,” you laughed. “Sorry for putting the Santa Claus up. It won’t be up ever again because it is very much broken. Seeing you fight is always surprisingly attractive.”

“Oh, really?” Scrooge smirked. “Well I am tougher than the toughies.” You and Scrooge slowly inched closer until your bills met. Scrooge practically pulled you into his lap. You knelt with your legs on either side of him so you could be comfortable in the chair with him. You didn’t want the moment to end. It was a perfect end to the night. When the clock struck midnight it startled you a bit and you pulled back. 

“Merry Christmas, (y/n).” Scrooge said softly. 

“Merry Christmas, Scrooge.” 

You and Scrooge moved all the Christmas gifts from the back room of his office to the foyer and arranged them under the tree. After the first two trips or so Mrs. Beakley, Duckworth, and Donald met up to help move all the presents. You all moved silently and quickly. When you finished you looked at the sheer beauty of it all. 

“Merry Christmas everyone,” you whispered. 

“Merry Christmas,” everyone whispered back. Donald, Mrs. Beakley, and Duckworth carried on back to bed. You stood there just a little longer. 

“It’s better than I could have ever imagined,” you gawked. “I’ve seen plenty of Christmas trees on television and at the mall and in pictures, but this tree in our home is the most beautiful I have ever seen.”

“You’re the most beautiful I’ve ever seen,” Scrooge said softly. You turned to him and took his hand.

“Let’s get to bed,” you suggested. “Tomorrow is going to be a fun day.” You and Scrooge went to his room and crawled in bed. You were almost too excited to sleep, but with Scrooge laying so close you were out in no time. 

When morning came you were the first awake. You raced to the foyer and anticipated what was to come. Soon you saw Dewey come in with Launchpad followed by Webby and Mrs. Beakley. Huey ran outside to get Donald from the houseboat and Louie brought Scrooge in. Duckworth soon showed up and it was time to open gifts. 

The kids shredded through the wrapping paper. They were all so happy and thankful. The kids played with a few of their new toys while you helped clean up the wrapping paper and boxes. Everyone began taking the things they received to their rooms when Scrooge stopped you for a moment. 

“I think you may have forgotten one,” he said as he pulled a box from his pocket. He opened it and there was a ring. “It’s not an engagement ring. It’s kind of a pre-engagement ring. A promise ring of sorts.”

You felt breathless in that moment. You suddenly noticed everyone watching you. The kids even seemed to stop and look. Time froze for you. You weren’t expecting this at all. You were elated, but it didn’t show on your face. You were just surprised. When time caught up to you you put your hand out and Scrooge slid the ring on. You were so happy you could cry and you were pretty sure you started to. 

You stared at the ring on your finger for a very long time. “Pre-engagement ring” rang in your head. Did that mean he would propose in the future?

“A-are they okay?” Louie asked. 

“I’m fine,” you managed to squeak out. You shook off the shock of it all. “Um, I’m… I’m just going to be right over here.” You laughed nervously before leaving the room. You went directly to the kitchen. You took a deep breath to keep yourself calm.

“(Y/n), are you sure you’re okay?” Mrs. Beakley asked as she entered the kitchen. Webby was right behind her. “You looked like you were about to pass out.”

“I’m fine really,” you answered. “I’m just very shaken up. I really was not expecting that.” 

“Really? We all saw it coming,” Webby mentioned. “We didn’t exactly expect it to be done today, but we saw it coming.”

“We had talked about the possibility of marriage in the future but we both agreed it was way too soon for any of that,” you sighed. “Is this his way of asking me to go steady? I’ve never had a long term relationship before. I don’t know how to do this.” 

“Just calm down,” Mrs. Beakley soothed. “This doesn’t change anything between you two. This is just a s big a step as saying ‘I love you’ or announcing that you’re dating.” 

“Did you not think this relationship would last?” Webby asked. 

“He kicked me out once, he could very well do it again,” you said.

“If he didn’t kick you out for letting Huey and Dewey steal his submarine and Launchpad then turn around and steal one of his cars with Louie and me then he’s not going to kick you out ever again,” Webby assured. “Scrooge loves you.”

You looked down at the ring on your finger. A pre-engagement ring. A promise ring. Scrooge really did love you. 

“I guess you’re right.” you sighed. “I should probably go back in there.” Mrs. Beakley and Webby both nodded. You took a deep breath and marched back into the foyer. When you got in there all the guys were talking in a group. When they noticed you they all went quiet. Scrooge turned to you with a worried smile. 

“So-” 

“I love it,” you cut him off. “I love it and I love you.”

“I’m glad,” Scrooge smiled. You noticed everyone watching you again. Instead of looks of concern they had looks of happiness. 

The day rolled on. The kids played with their new toys, Mrs. Beakley cooked and baked for the dinner that evening, and Gyro, Fenton, and Officer Cabrera showed up. You all had dinner and Scrooge gave Gyro, Fenton, and Launchpad their holiday bonuses. You jokingly asked for yours and Scrooge jokingly said “oh you’ll get yours,” then winked. You nearly choked on your drink. 

Your first Christmas had a terribly bumpy start, but in the end you couldn’t have asked for anything better. It was perfect. You were surrounded by a loving family and you were pre-engaged (whatever that means). It was more than anything you could have ever asked for.


	32. A Pirate's Ghost

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a fast paced short chapter that took forever to come out. I've been very distracted lately. It isn't a great chapter tbh and it was going to be longer and better but I just couldn't pull it together. Sorry guys.

You found yourself at the wrong end of a backsword. The ship swayed with the violent waves crashing into it. Cold rain hit like needles against your skin. The kids were tied to the mast and Scrooge and Launchpad were surrounded by pirates with swords. Behind you was a nasty fall into treacherous waters and in front of you was the pirate captain Grace O’Mallardy. 

“It’s over,” Grace smirked. “You’ve lost, McDuck.”

“Wait, hold up, McDuck?” You laughed. “No, I’m (y/n) (l/n).”

“That isn’t a wedding band on your hand then?” Grace lowered her sword. 

“No, it’s… hard to explain…” you sighed. 

“(Y/n)!” You heard Scrooge yell. He kicked one of the pirates in front of him, took his sword, then tossed it to you. You caught the sword and Grace raised hers. You lunged at her just to get away from the edge and she jumped back. Your swords clacked and clanged as you advanced and retreated. Scrooge and Launchpad managed to take on the group of pirates that were surrounding them. You also noticed Webby get free of the ropes then help the boys get free. 

“Shouldn’t you be having this fight with Scrooge?” You asked Grace in the middle of your fight. 

“I figured what better way to get to him than to skewer his partner,” Grace lunged and you deflected quickly. 

“Huh, I don’t like the term ‘skewer’ much… I think I’d rather take my chances with the sea.”

“Oh be my guest.” 

Grace tried forcing you back to the open edge but you wouldn’t let her. You moved quick and cut her hand to get her to drop her sword. Once she did, you hooked a foot behind her knee and made her fall back. You kicked her sword away and pointed yours at her throat. You looked up and noticed the kids tying up the other pirates. 

“Oh man, I missed the good part,” you whined. You tied Grace O’Mallardy’s arms behind her back and bound her ankles together so she couldn’t get free easily. The rain began to finally let up. 

“So what’s up with the ring then?” Grace asked. 

“Oh, it’s a promise ring. It’s a promise that he’ll propose one day,” you explained. 

“Well doesn’t that sound like total crap,” she laughed. “It sounds to me like he’s just stringing you along, love. ‘A promise that he’ll propose’ then why doesn’t he just propose?”

“We’ve discussed it and it’s way too soon to actually consider marriage.”

“Then why promise to propose?”

“Because we love each other and we’d like to think that one day we will get married. Look, I don’t have to explain anything to you.”

“You’re just saying that because I’ve found a valid plot hole in your relationship and you don’t want to face it.”

“Hey Scrooge, let’s grab what they took from us and get going.” You called out. 

“Oh that’s the perfect way to avoid the truth,” Grace snarked. Scrooge, Launchpad, and the kids went into the captains quarters and loaded up the treasures that the pirates had taken. Launchpad jumped down to Scrooge’s yacht first. Once all the treasure was loaded up the kids jumped down and Launchpad caught them. 

“Come along, (y/n),” Scrooge called. You smiled at Grace before walking away. 

“Wait, you’re just going to leave us tied up here?!” Grace cried out. “What if we run aground?! We could drown!”

“A good captain always goes down with her ship right?” You asked. “Nah I’m kidding. I’m not that cruel.” You kicked a sword close to Grace and another close enough to make her crew struggle to grab it. “Just know if you mess with my family again, I won’t be so merciful.” With that you jumped to Scrooge’s yacht below. 

When you got back to the mansion you helped unload all the treasure so it could be sent to the bin. You had a nagging feeling that something wasn’t right, but you shook it off. You figured you were just tired from sword fighting in the rain. 

“(Y/n), can you come here for a moment?” You heard Scrooge say as you passed his office. You entered the office, but Scrooge wasn’t even there. You could have sworn his voice had come from his office. You continued back down the hall and to the foyer where you spotted Duckworth.

“Duckworth, do you know where Scrooge is?” you asked. 

“I believe he went with the treasure to the money bin,” Duckworth answered. 

“Oh alright.”

“Did you need something?”

“No, I just could have sworn I heard him call me into his office a minute ago. Must have been my imagination.”

“You’re looking a little tired,” Duckworth mentioned with concern. “I think you should relax for a while. Let me walk you to your room.” Duckworth took your arm and walked you to Scrooge’s room. It seemed apparent to everyone that it was your room too now. Duckworth looked distracted as he walked with you. He opened the door for you and closed it behind you. Something about him seemed off, but he was right. You were tired. You crawled into bed and fell asleep in minutes. 

You woke up to see Scrooge slouched at the end of the bed. You sat up and were instantly struck with the worst migraine you ever experienced. Scrooge’s voice echoed in the room despite him not actually speaking. “Get out,” you heard those damned words repeating over and over. You felt as if you couldn’t breathe. Your instinct was to run. You sprinted out of the room and straight through Duckworth. 

“(Y/n) are you okay?” Duckworth asked. You struggled to breathe but air slowly worked its way into your lungs. 

“I don’t know what the hell is going on,” you panted. You walked back into the room with shaking legs to see it was empty. “Scrooge was just in there. I could have sworn…” 

“Scrooge isn’t in there… but something else is,” Duckworth scowled. He walked into the room and closed the doors behind him. 

“What’s-”

“Whoever is in here show yourself,” Duckworth demanded cutting you off. There was a moment of deafening silence. 

“You lot really ruin the fun don’t ya?” You heard a familiar voice whine. Grace O’Mallardy stepped through the wall and into the room. “I wanted to keep this going for a few days before someone called me out. I wasn’t expecting the butler to be a ghost too.”

“A ghost? Did I kill you?!” You panicked. 

“Of course not,” Grace laughed. “There was a mutiny soon after you left and it did not end well for me. I’m only here because I wanted to make you squirm for a while. I mean you were kind of one of the causes of the mutiny so here’s my revenge. Too bad it’s been cut short.” Grace stared down Duckworth for a moment. 

“I’m the only spirit allowed in this house for the time being ma’am,” Duckworth explained. “Please move on.”

“Oh and what are you going to do if I don’t then?” Grace smirked.

Duckworth asked you to step out of the room for a moment. You stood in the hallway and heard the most inhuman noises coming from inside. Then it went silent. Duckworth stepped out and gave you a warm smile. 

“I don’t think you have to worry about her,” Duckworth mentioned. 

“Thank you for resolving that issue so quickly,” you sighed. “Did you know she was here already?”

“Kind of. You looked as if something was syphoning your energy. I’m just surprised it took you this long to bring home a ghost. I’m still surprised you haven’t had any major curses.”

“Just lucky I guess,” you joked. You helped Duckworth clean the rest of the day as thanks for him helping you. You were surprised to see how quickly he was able to catch on to Grace’s presence. You were also very grateful. If Grace was planning to pull more stunts like that you wouldn’t have made it very long. Just the one situation in the bedroom left you in pure panic. You couldn’t imagine what else she had planned.


End file.
